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This  BOOK 

may  be  kept  out  TWO  WEEKS 

ONLY,    and    is    subject   to   a    fine    of    FIVE 

CENTS  a  day  thereafter.   It  was  taken  out  on 

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MAY      1  1961 
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Lib.  lOM-Fe  '38 

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THE- BLUE- BIRD 

FOR  CHILDREN 

THE -WONDERFUL*  ADVENTURES 

OF  -  TYLTYL  -AND  *  MYTYL  -  IN 

SEARCH  -OF  •  HAPPINESS 

BY 

GEORGETTE    LEBLANC 

[  MADAME     MAURICE     MAETERLINCK] 

/Wi^nce       A/deTer //' n  £-/< 

EDITED    AND  ARRANGED    FOR    SCHOOLS 
BY 

FREDERICK  ORVILLE  PERKINS 

TRANSLATED  BY 
ALEXANDER  TEIXE1RA  DE  MATTOS 


LCO 


SILVER-  BURDETT   fr  COMPANY 

BOSTON    -     NEW  YORK    -     CHICAGO  ATLANTA 

DALLAS        -       SAN    FRANCISCO 


Copyright,  1913 

by  the  curtis  publishing  company 

Copyright,  1913 

BY   DODD,   MEAD   &   COMPANY 

Copyright,  1914 

BY   SILVER,    BURDETT   &   COMPANY 


Jo 
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Gjfiis  <Scfiool  €dition^<Dfiej&hie 
^Jo^ird^/dr  Gfcildren  is  a$ec/fon~ 
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ofzAiaerica^ — — ^_^^_9 

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P^adameJKaume/{aeferlmc£) 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


http://archive.org/details/bluebirdforchildOOIebl 


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£7fie!BlueJ3ird,  inftaSitant \pf  tfie 
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of  our  dreams  is  an  ancient  sym6ol 
mt£eK/ol£loreKo^/drraine  and 
stands \fbr  /zappiness!h^>^3^^^) 

One  of  the  strongest  pieces  of  imaginative  writing  for  children  that 
the  past  decade  has  produced  and  one  of  the  most  delicate  and  beauti- 
ful of  all  times,  is  "The  Blue  Bird,"  by  Maurice  Maeterlinck,  written 
as  a  play,  and  very  successfully  produced  on  the  stage. 

Georgette  Leblanc  (Madame  Maurice  Maeterlinck),  has  rendered 
this  play  in  story  form  for  children,  under  the  title  "The  Children's 
Blue  Bird,"  and  in  this  form  it  has  now  been  carefully  edited  and  ar- 
ranged for  schools. 

Maurice  Maeterlinck  was  born  in  Ghent,  Belgium,  August  29, 
1862.  Although  trained  for  the  practice  of  the  law  and  moderately 
successful  in  it,  he  very  early  became  dissatisfied  with  the  prospect 
of  a  career  at  the  bar.  In  1887,  the  young  man  moved  to  Paris  and 
turned  his  attention  to  writing.  Shortly  after,  at  the  death  of  his 
father,  Maeterlinck  returned  to  Belgium  where  he  has  since  resided 
most  of  the  time.  His  career  as  an  author  practically  began  in  1889, 
when  he  published  two  plays.  At  this  time  he  was  quite  unknown, 
except  to  a  small  circle,  but  soon,  because  of  his  remarkable  original- 
ity, we  find  him  being  called  "The  Belgian  Shakespeare,"  and  his 
reputation  firmly  established. 

Amidst  his  Belgian  roses  he  continued  to  work  and  dream,  and 
upon  his  youthful  dreams  he  built  his  plays.  They  are  all  shadowy, 
brief  transcripts  of  emotion,  and  illustrate  beautifully  his  unity  of 
purpose,  of  mood  and  of  thought.  Whether  in  philosophy,  drama 
or  poetry,  Maeterlinck  is  exclusively  occupied  in  revealing  or  indi- 
cating the  mystery  which  lies  only  just  out  of  sight  beneath  the  ordi- 
nary life.  In  order  to  produce  this  effect  of  the  mysterious  he  aims  at 
extreme  simplicity  of  style  and  a  very  realistic  symbolism,    He  allows 


viii  To  the  Teacher 

life  itself  to  astonish  us  by  its  strangeness,  by  its  inexplicable  elements. 
Many  of  his  plays  are  really  pathetic  records  of  unseen  emotions. 

Of  all  his  writings,  it  is  conceded  that  "The  Blue  Bird"  makes  the 
strongest  appeal  to  children.  Maeterlinck  has  always  had  much  in 
common  with  the  young.  He  has  the  child's  mysticism  and  awe  of 
the  unknown,  the  same  delight  in  mechanical  inventions,  the  same 
gift  of  "making  believe." 

In  "The  Blue  Bird"  Maeterlinck  takes  little  account  of  external 
fact.  All  along  he  has  kept  the  child's  capacity  for  wonder;  all  along 
he  has  preserved  youth's  freshness  of  heart.  He  has,  therefore,  never 
lost  the  key  which  unlocks  the  sympathies  of  childhood;  he  still  pos- 
sesses the  passport  that  makes  him  free  of  the  kingdom  of  Fairyland. 

This  story  of  "The  Blue  Bird"  may  remind  one  somewhat  of 
"  Hansel  and  Gretel,"  for  here  Maeterlinck,  like  Grimm,  shows  to 
us  the  adventures  of  two  peasant  children  as  they  pass  through  regions 
of  enchantment  where  they  would  be  at  the  mercy  of  treacherous  foes, 
but  for  the  aid  of  a  supernatural  friend.  But  the  originality,  the  charm 
and  the  interest  of  "The  Blue  Bird"  depend  on  the  way  in  which  the 
author,  while  adapting  his  language  and  his  legends  to  the  intelligence 
of  youthful  readers,  manages  to  show  them  the  wonders  and  romance 
of  Nature.  He  enlists  among  his  characters  a  whole  series  of  inani- 
mate objects,  such  as  Bread,  Sugar,  Milk,  Light,  Water,  Fire  and 
Trees,  besides  the  Cat,  the  Dog  and  other  animals,  investing  them 
all  with  individuality,  —  making  for  instance,  with  characteristic 
bias,  the  Dog  the  faithful  friend  of  his  boy  and  girl  companions  and 
the  Cat  their  stealthy  enemy. 

We  may  not  understand  his  characters,  we  may  not  be  informed 
whence  they  came  or  whither  they  move;  there  is  nothing  concrete 
or  circumstantial  about  them;  their  life  is  intense  and  consistent,  but 
it  is  wholly  in  a  spiritual  character.  They  are  mysterious  with  the 
mystery  of  the  movements  of  the  soul. 

All  through  the  story  we  are  led  to  feel  that  Maeterlinck's  spirit  is 
one  of  grave  and  disinterested  attachment  to  the  highest  moral  beauty, 
and  his  seriousness,  his  serenity  and  his  extreme  originality  impress 
even  those  who  are  bewildered  by  his  graces  and  his  mysticism. 

"The  Blue  Bird"  will  forever  live  among  Maeterlinck's  greatest 
works  and  will  linger  long  in  the  memory  of  all  children,  continuing 
throughout  their  lives  to  symbolize  that  ideal  of  ideals,  true  happi- 
ness, —  the  happiness  that  comes  from  right  seeking. 


Contents 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I    The  Woodcutter's  Cottage     .....  3 

II    At  the  Fairy's •  31 

III  The  Land  of  Memory 49 

IV  The  Palace  of  Night .  65 

V    The  Kingdom  of  the  Future          «      .     .     .  89 

VI    In  the  Temple  of  Light     .     .     .     .     .     .117 

VII    The  Graveyard 125 

VIII    The  Forest „  137 

IX    The  Leave-Taking 157 

X    The  Awakening 169 


Illustrations 


The  Land  of  Memory       .....        ....      Frontispiece 


FACING 
PAGE 


She   herself  helped   Mytyl 10 

They  all  looked  at  her  with  a  bewildered  air.     They  understood 

that  it  was  a  solemn  moment 3 8 

Delighted  with  the  importance  of  his  duty,  undid  the  top  of  his 

robe,  drew  his  scimitar  and  cut  two  slices  out  of  his  stomach     42 

Sugar  also  wanted  to  impress  the  company  and,  breaking  off 

two  of  his  fingers,  handed  them  to  the  astonished  Children     44 

Everything  vanished  and,  instead,  there  appeared  a  pretty  little 

peasant's    cottage 50 

The  grandparents  and  grandchildren  sat  down  to  supper     .      .      56 

The  road  to  the  Palace  of  Night  was  rather  long  and  rather 

dangerous 66 

Night  sat  up,  all  quivering.     Her  immense  wings  beat  around 

her;  and  she  questioned  Tylette  in  a  trembling  voice  .      .      68 

Wagging  her  head  and  stopping  every  minute  to  cough,  sneeze 

and  blow  her  nose 74 

A  wonderful  garden  lay  before  him,  a  dream-garden  filled  with 

flowers  that  shone  like  stars oO 


Illustrations 


FACING 
PAGE 


Light's  servants  were  very  odd 90 

Other  Blue  Children  opened  great  big  books 98 

Other   Blue    Children   unfolded    maps    and   plans,    or   brought 

enormous  flowers 102 

And,  in  a  moment,  the  Blue  Children  were  crowding  round  the 

tall    old    man IIO 

The  Cat  at  once  draped  her  cloak  round  her,  opened  the  door 

and  ran  and  bounded  out  into  the  forest 119 

A  regular  waterfall  of  tears  came  gushing  from  her  eyes,  flood- 
ing all  around  her 154 

Closely  pursued  by  the  Dog,  who  overwhelmed  her  with  bites, 

blows    and    kicks 1 62 

"It's  the  Blue  Bird  we  were  looking  for!     We  have  been  miles 

and  miles  and  miles  and  he  was  here  all  the  time !"     .      .   1 74 


CHAPTER  I 

THE    WOODCUTTER'S    COTTAGE 

Once  upon  a  time,  a  woodcutter  and  his  wife  lived  in  their 
cottage  on  the  edge  of  a  large  and  ancient  forest.  They 
had  two  dear  little  children  who  met  with  a  most  wonder- 
ful adventure. 

But,  before  telling  you  all  about  it,  I  must  describe  the 
children  to  you  and  let  you  know  something  of  their  char- 
acter; for,  if  they  had  not  been  so  sweet  and  brave  and 
plucky,  the  curious  story  which  you  are  about  to  hear  would 
never  have  happened  at  all. 

Tyltyl — that  was  our  hero's  name — was  ten  years  old; 
and  Mytyl,  his  little  sister,  was  only  six. 

/Tyltyl  was  a  fine,  tall  little  fellow,  stout  and  well-set- 
up, with  curly  black  hair  which  was  often  in  a  tangle,  for 
he  was  fond  of  a  romp.  He  was  a  great  favorite  because 
of  his  smiling  and  good-tempered  face  and  the  bright  look 
in  his  eyes;  but,  best  of  all,  he  had  the  ways  of  a  bold  and 
fearless  little  man,  which  showed  the  noble  qualities  of  his 
heart.    When,  early  in  the  morning,  he  trotted  along"  the 

3 


4  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

forest-road  by  the  side  of  his  daddy,  Tyl  the  woodcutter, 
for  all  his  shabby  clothes  he  looked  so  proud  and  gallant 
that  every  beautiful  thing  on  the  earth  and  in  the  sky 
seemed  to  lie  in  wait  for  him  to  smile  upon  him  as  he 
passed. 

His  little  sister  was  very  different,  but  looked  ever  so 
sweet  and  pretty  in  her  long  frock,  which  Mummy  Tyl 
kept  neatly  patched  for  her.  She  was  as  fair  as  her 
brother  was  dark;  and  her  large  timid  eyes  were  blue  as  the 
forget-me-nots  in  the  fields.  Anything  was  enough  to 
frighten  her  and  she  would  cry  at  the  least  thing;  but  her 
little  child  soul  already  held  the  highest  womanly  qual- 
ities :  she  was  loving  and  gentle  and  so  fondly  devoted  to 
her  brother  that,  rather  than  abandon  him,  she  did  not  hes- 
itate to  undertake  a  long  and  dangerous  journey  in  his 
company. 

What  happened  and  how  our  little  hero  and  heroine 
went  off  into  the  world  one  night  in  search  of  happiness: 
that  is  the  subject  of  my  story. 

Daddy  Tyl's  cottage  was  the  poorest  of  the  country- 
side; and  it  seemed  even  more  wretched  because  it  stood 
opposite  a  splendid  hall  in  which  rich  children  lived. 
From  the  windows  of  the  cottage  you  could  see  what  went 
on  inside  the  Hall  when  the  dining-room  and  drawing- 


The  Woodcutter's  Cottage  5 

rooms  were  lit  up  in  the  evening.  And,  in  the  daytime, 
you  saw  the  little  children  playing  on  the  terraces,  in  the 
gardens  and  in  the  hot-houses  which  people  came  all  the 
way  from  town  to  visit  because  they  were  always  filled 
with  the  rarest  flowers. 

Now,  one  evening  which  was  not  like  other  evenings, 
for  it  was  Christmas  Eve,  Mummy  Tyl  put  her  little  ones 
to  bed  and  kissed  them  even  more  lovingly  than  usual. 
She  felt  a  little  sad  because,  owing  to  the  stormy  weather, 
Daddy  Tyl  was  not  able  to  go  to  work  in  the  forest;  and 
so  she  had  no  money  to  buy  presents  with  which  to  fill 
Tyltyl  and  Mytyl's  stockings.  The  Children  soon  fell 
asleep,  everything  was  still  and  silent  and  not  a  sound 
was  heard  but  the  purring  of  the  cat,  the  snoring  of  the  dog 
and  the  ticking  of  the  great  grandfather's  clock.  But 
suddenly  a  light  as  bright  as  day  crept  through  the  shut- 
ters, the  lamp  upon  the  table  lit  again  of  itself  and  the  two 
Children  awoke,  yawned,  rubbed  their  eyes,  stretched 
out  their  arms  in  bed  and  Tyltyl,  in  a  cautious  voice 
called: 

"MytylT 

"Yes,  Tyltyl?"  was  the  answer. 

"Are  you  asleep?" 

"Are  you?" 


6  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"No,"  said  Tyltyl.  "How  can  I  be  asleep,  when  I'm 
talking  to  you?" 

"I  say,  is  this  Christmas  Day?"  asked  his  sister. 

"Not  yet;  not  till  to-morrow.  But  Father  Christmas 
won't  bring  us  anything  this  year." 

"Why  not?" 

"I  heard  Mummy  say  that  she  couldn't  go  to  town  to  tell 
him.     But  he  will  come  next  year." 

"Is  next  year  far  off?" 

"A  good  long  while,"  said  the  boy.  "But  he  will  come 
to  the  rich  children  to-night." 

"Really?" 

"Hullo!"  cried  Tyltyl  of  a  sudden.  "Mummy's  forgot- 
ten to  put  out  the  lamp!  .  .  .  I've  an  idea!" 

"What?" 

"Let's  get  up." 

"But  we  mustn't,"  said  Mytyl,  who  always  remembered. 

"Why,  there's  no  one  about!  .  .  .  Do  you  see  the  shut- 
ters?" 

"Oh,  how  bright  they  are!"  .  .  . 

"It's  the  lights  of  the  party,"  said  TyltyL 

"What  party?" 

"The  rich  children  opposite.  It's  the  Christmas-tree. 
Let's  open  the  shutters.  .  .  ." 


'The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  7 

"Can  we?"  asked  Mytyl,  timidly. 

"Of  course  we  can;  there's  no  one  to  stop  us.  .  .  .  Do 
you  hear  the  music?  .  .  .  Let  us  get  up." 

The  two  Children  jumped  out  of  bed,  ran  to  the  window, 
climbed  on  the  stool  in  front  of  it  and  threw  back  the  shut- 
ters. A  bright  light  filled  the  room;  and  the  Children 
looked  out  eagerly: 

"We  can  see  everything!"  said  Tyltyl. 

"I  can't,"  said  poor  little  Mytyl,  who  could  hardly  find 
room  on  the  stool. 

"It's  snowing!"  said  Tyltyl.  "There  are  two  car- 
riages, with  six  horses  each  1" 

"There  are  twelve  little  boys  getting  out!"  said 
Mytyl,  who  was  doing  her  best  to  peep  out  of  the  win- 
dow. 

"Don't  be  silly!  .  .  .  They're  little  girls  .  .  ." 

"They've  got  knickerbockers  on  .  .  ." 

"Do  be  quiet!  .  .  .  And  look!  .  .  ." 

"What  are  those  gold  things  there,  hanging  from  the 
branches?" 

"Why,  toys,  to  be  sure!"  said  Tyltyl.  "Swords,  guns, 
soldiers,  cannons.  .  .  ." 

"And  what's  that,  all  round  the  table?" 

"Cakes  and  fruit  and  cream-tarts." 


8  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Oh,  how  pretty  the  children  are!"  cried  Mytyl,  clap- 
ping her  hands. 

"And  how  they're  laughing  and  laughing!"  answered 
Tyltyl. 

"And  the  little  ones  dancing!  .  .  ." 

"Yes,  yes;  let's  dance  too!"  shouted  Tyltyl. 

And  the  two  Children  began  to  stamp  their  feet  for  joy 
on  the  stool: 

"Oh,  what  fun!"  said  Mytyl. 

"They're  getting  the  cakes!"  cried  Tyltyl.  "They  can 
touch  them!  .  .  .  They're  eating,  they're  eating,  they're 
eating!  .  .  .  Oh,  how  lovely,  how  lovely!  .  .  ." 

Mytyl  began  to  count  imaginary  cakes: 

"I  have  twelve !  .  .  ." 

"And  I  four  times  twelve!"  said  Tyltyl.  "But  I'll  give 
you  sjme.  ..." 

And  our  little  friends,  dancing,  laughing  and  shrieking 
with  delight,  rejoiced  so  prettily  in  the  other  children's 
happiness  that  they  forgot  their  own  poverty  and  want. 
They  were  soon  to  have  their  reward.  Suddenly,  there 
came  a  loud  knocking  at  the  door.  The  startled  Children 
ceased  their  romp  and  dared  not  move  a  limb.  Then  the 
big  wooden  latch  lifted  of  itself,  wLuh  a  loud  creak;  the 
door  opened  slowly;  and  in  crept  a  little  old  woman, 


^the  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  9 

dressed  all  in  green,  with  a  red  hood  over  her  head.  She 
was  hump-backed  and  lame  and  had  only  one  eye ;  her  nose 
and  chin  almost  touched;  and  she  walked  leaning  on  a 
stick.     She  was  surely  a  fairy. 

She  hobbled  up  to  the  Children  and  asked,  in  a  snuffling 
voice : 

"Have  you  the  grass  here  that  sings  or  the  bird  that  is 
bluer 

"We  have  some  grass,"  replied  Tyltyl,  trembling  all 
over  his  body,  "but  it  can't  sing  .  .  ." 

"Tyltyl  has  a  bird,"  said  Mytyl. 

"But  I  can't  give  it  away,  because  it's  mine,"  the  little 
fellow  added,  quickly. 

Now  wasn't  that  a  capital  reason ? 

The  Fairy  put  on  her  big,  round  glasses  and  looked  at 
the  bird : 

"He's  not  blue  enough,"  she  exclaimed.  "I  must  abso- 
lutely have  the  Blue  Bird.  It's  for  my  little  girl,  who 
is  very  ill  .  .  .  Do  you  know  what  the  Blue  Bird  stands 
for?  No?  I  thought  you  didn't;  and,  as  you  are  good 
children,  I  will  tell  you."     • 

The  Fairy  raised  her  crooked  finger  to  her  long,  pointed 
nose,  and  whispered,  in  a  mysterious  tone : 

"The  Blue  Bird  stands  for  happiness;  and  I  want  you 


10  tfhe  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

to  understand  that  my  little  girl  must  be  happy  in  order 
to  get  well.  That  is  why  I  now  command  you  to  go  out 
into  the  world  and  find  the  Blue  Bird  for  her.  You  will 
have  to  start  at  once  .  .  .  Do  you  know  who  I  am?" 

The  Children  exchanged  puzzled  glances.  The  fact  was 
that  they  had  never  seen  a  fairy  before;  and  they  felt  a 
little  scared  in  her  presence.  However,  Tyltyl  soon  said 
politely : 

"You  are  rather  like  our  neighbor,  Madame  Berlin- 
got   .    .    . 

Tyltyl  thought  that,  in  saying  this,  he  was  paying  the 
Fairy  a  compliment;  for  Madame  Berlingot's  shop,  which 
was  next  door  to  their  cottage,  was  a  very  pleasant  place. 
It  was  stocked  with  sweets,  marbles,  chocolate  cigars  and 
sugar  dolls  and  hens;  and,  at  fair-time,  there  were  big 
gingerbread  dolls  covered  all  over  with  gilt  paper.  Goody 
Berlingot  had  a  nose  that  was  quite  as  ugly  as  the  Fairy's; 
she  was  old  also;  and,  like  the  Fairy,  she  walked  doubled 
up  in  two;  but  she  was  very  kind  and  she  had  a  dear  little 
girl  who  used  to  play  on  Sundays  with  the  woodcutter's 
Children.  Unfortunately,  the  poor  little  pretty,  fair-haired 
thing  was  always  suffering  from  some  unknown  complaint, 
which  often  kept  her  in  bed.     When  this  happened,  she 


She  herself  helped  Mytyl 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  11 

used  to  beg  and  pray  for  Tyltyl's  dove  to  play  with;  but 
Tyltyl  was  so  fond  of  the  bird  that  he  would  not  give  it 
to  her.  All  this,  thought  the  little  boy,  was  very  like  that 
which  the  Fairy  told  him;  and  that  was  why  he  called  her 
Berlingot. 

Much  to  his  surprise,  the  Fairy  turned  crimson  with 
rage.  It  was  a  hobby  of  hers  to  be  like  nobody,  because 
she  was  a  fairy  and  able  to  change  her  appearance,  from 
one  moment  to  the  next,  as  she  pleased.  That  evening, 
she  happened  to  be  ugly  and  old  and  hump-backed;  she 
had  lost  one  of  her  eyes;  and  two  lean  wisps  of  grey  hair 
hung  over  her  shoulders. 

"What  do  I  look  like?'  she  asked  Tyltyl.  "Am  I  pretty 
or  ugly?    Old  or  young?" 

Her  reason  for  asking  these  questions  was  to  try  the 
kindness  of  the  little  boy.  He  turned  away  his  head  and 
dared  not  say  what  he  thought  of  her  looks.     Then  she  cried  : 

"I  am  the  Fairy  Berylune!" 

"Oh,  that's  all  right !"  answered  Tyltyl,  who,  by  this  time, 
was  shaking  in  every  limb. 

This  satisfied  the  Fairy;  and,  as  the  Children  were  still 
in  their  night-shirts,  she  told  them  to  get  dressed.  She  her- 
self helped  Mytyl  and,  while  she  did  so,  asked : 


12  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Where  are  your  Father  and  Mother?" 

"In  there,"  said  Tyltyl,  pointing  to  the  door  on  the  right. 
'"They're  asleep." 

"And  your  Grandad  and  Granny?" 

"They're  dead.  .  .  ." 

"And  your  little  brothers  and  sisters  .  .  .  Have  you 
any?  .  .  ." 

"Oh,  yes,  three  little  brothers!"  said  Tyltyl. 

"And  four  little  sisters,"  added  Mytyl. 

"Where  are  they?"  asked  the  Fairy. 

"They  are  dead,  too,"  answered  Tyltyl. 

"Would  you  like  to  see  them  again?" 

"Oh,  yes!  .  .  .  At  once!  .  .  .  Show  them  to  us !  .  .  .  : 

"I  haven't  them  in  my  pocket,"  said  the  Fairy.  "But 
this  is  very  lucky;  you  will  see  them  when  you  go  through 
the  Land  of  Memory.  It's  on  the  way  to  the  Blue  Bird,  just 
on  the  left,  past  the  third  turning  .  .  .  What  were  you  do- 
ing when  I  knocked?" 

"We  were  playing  at  eating  cakes,"  said  Tyltyl. 

"Have  you  any  cakes?  .  .  .  Where  are  they?  .  .  ." 

"In  the  house  of  the  rich  children  .  .  .  Come  and  look, 
it's  so  lovely!" 

And  Tyltyl  dragged  the  Fairy  to  the  window. 

"But  it's  the  others  who  are  eating  them!"  said  she. 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  13 

"Yes,  but  we  can  see  them  eat,"  said  Tyltyl. 

"Aren't  you  cross  with  them?" 

"What  for?' 

"For  eating  all  the  cakes.  I  think  it's  very  wrong  of  them 
not  to  give  you  any." 

"Not  at  all;  they're  rich!  ...  I  say,  isn't  it  beautiful 
over  there?" 

"It's  just  the  same  here,  only  you  can't  see.  .  .  ." 

"Yes,  I  can,"  said  Tyltyl.  "I  have  very  good  eyes.  I  can 
see  the  time  on  the  church  clock;  and  Daddy  can't!" 

The  Fairy  suddenly  grew  angry: 

"I  tell  you  that  you  can't  see!"  she  said. 

And  she  grew  angrier  and  angrier.  As  though  it  mat- 
tered about  seeing  the  time  on  the  church  clock! 

Of  course,  the  little  boy  was  not  blind;  but,  as  he  was 
kind-hearted  and  deserved  to  be  happy,  she  wanted  to 
teach  him  to  see  what  is  good  and  beautiful  in  all  things. 
It  was  not  an  easy  task,  for  she  well  knew  that  most 
people  live  and  die  without  enjoying  the  happiness  that 
lies  all  around  them.  Still,  as  she  was  a  fairy,  she  was 
all-powerful;  and  so  she  decided  to  give  him  a  little  hat 
adorned  with  a  magic  diamond  that  would  possess  the  ex- 
traordinary property  of  always  showing  him  the  truth, 
which  would  help  him  to  see  the  inside  of  Things  and  thus 


14  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

teach  him  that  each  of  them  has  a  life  and  an  existence  of 
its  own,  created  to  match  and  gladden  ours. 

The  Fairy  took  the  little  hat  from  a  great  bag  hanging  by 
her  side.  It  was  green  and  had  a  white  cockade,  with  the 
big  diamond  shining  in  the  middle  of  it.  Tyltyl  was  be- 
side himself  with  delight.  The  Fairy  explained  to  him 
how  the  diamond  worked.  By  pressing  the  top,  you  saw 
the  soul  of  Things;  if  you  gave  it  a  little  turn  to  the  right, 
you  discovered  the  Past;  and,  when  you  turned  it  to  the 
left,  you  beheld  the  Future. 

Tyltyl  beamed  all  over  his  face  and  danced  for  joy;  and 
then  he  at  once  became  afraid  of  losing  the  little  hat: 

"Daddy  will  take  it  from  me!"  he  cried. 

"No,"  said  the  Fairy,  "for  no  one  can  see  it  as  long  as  it's 
on  your  head  .  .  .  Will  you  try  it?" 

"Yes,  yes!"  cried  the  Children,  clapping  their  hands. 

The  hat  was  no  sooner  on  the  little  boy's  head  than  a 
rnagic  change  came  over  everything.  The  old  Fairy  turned 
into  a  young  and  beautiful  princess,  dressed  all  in  silk  and 
covered  with  sparkling  jewels;  the  walls  of  the  cottage  be- 
came transparent  and  gleamed  like  precious  stones;  the 
humble  deal  furniture  shone  like  marble.  The  two  children 
ran  from  right  to  left  clapping  their  hands  and  shouting 
with  delight. 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  15 

"Oh,  how  lovely,  how  lovely!"  exclaimed  Tyltyl. 

And  Mytyl,  like  the  vain  little  thing  she  was,  stood  spell- 
bound before  the  beauty  of  the  fair  princess'  dress. 

But  further  and  much  greater  surprises  were  in  store  for 
them.  Had  not  the  Fairy  said  that  the  Things  and  the 
Animals  would  come  to  life,  talk  and  behave  like  every- 
body else*?  Lo  and  behold,  suddenly  the  door  of  the  grand- 
father's clock  opened,  the  silence  was  filled  with  the 
sweetest  music  and  twelve  little  daintily-dressed  and 
laughing  dancers  began  to  skip  and  spin  all  around  the 
Children. 

"They  are  the  Hours  of  your  life,"  said  the  Fairy. 

"May  I  dance  with  them4?"  asked  Tyltyl,  gazing  with 
admiration  at  those  pretty  creatures,  who  seemed  to  skim 
over  the  floor  like  birds. 

But  just  then  he  burst  into  a  wild  fit  of  laughter!  Who 
was  that  funny  fat  fellow,  all  out  of  breath  and  covered 
with  flour,  who  came  struggling  out  of  the  bread-pan  and 
bowing  to  the  children4?  It  was  Bread!  Bread  himself, 
taking  advantage  of  the  reign  of  liberty  to  go  for  a  little 
walk  on  earth!  He  looked  like  a  stout,  comical  old  gen- 
tleman; his  face  was  puffed  out  with  dough;  and  his  large 
hands,  at  the  end  of  his  thick  arms,  were  not  able  to  meet, 
when  he  laid  them  on  his  great,  round  stomach.     He  was 


16  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

dressed  in  a  tight-fitting  crust-coloured  suit,  with  stripes 
across  the  chest  like  those  on  the  nice  buttered  rolls  which  we 
have  for  breakfast  in  the  morning.  On  his  head — just 
think  of  it ! — he  wore  an  enormous  bun,  which  made  a  funny 
sort  of  turban. 

He  had  hardly  tumbled  out  of  his  pan,  when  other  loaves 
just  like  him,  but  smaller,  followed  after  and  began  to 
frisk  about  with  the  Hours,  without  giving  a  thought  to  the 
flour  which  they  scattered  over  those  pretty  ladies  and  which 
wrapped  them  in  great  white  clouds. 

It  was  a  queer  and  charming  dance;  and  the  Children 
were  delighted.  The  Hours  waltzed  with  the  loaves;  the 
plates,  joining  in  the  fun,  hopped  up  and  down  on  the 
dresser,  at  the  risk  of  falling  off  and  smashing  to  pieces; 
the  glasses  in  the  cupboard  clinked  together,  to  drink  the 
health  of  one  and  all.  As  to  the  forks,  they  chattered  so 
loudly  with  the  knives  that  you  could  not  hear  yourself 
speak  for  the  noise.  .  .  . 

There  is  no  knowing  what  would  have  happened  if  the 
din  had  lasted  much  longer.  Daddy  and  Mummy  Tyl 
would  certainly  have  waked  up.  Fortunately,  when  the 
romp  was  at  its  height,  an  enormous  flame  darted  out  of  the 
chimney  and  filled  the  room  with  a  great  red  glow,  as  though 
the  house  were  on  fire.     Everybody  bolted  into  the  corners 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  17 

in  dismay,  while  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl,  sobbing  with  fright, 
hid  their  heads  under  the  good  Fairy's  cloak. 

"Don't  be  afraid,"  she  said.  "It's  only  Fire,  who  has 
come  to  join  in  your  fun.  He  is  a  good  sort,  but  you  had 
better  not  touch  him,  for  he  has  a  hot  temper." 

Peeping  anxiously  through  the  beautiful  gold  lace  that 
edged  the  Fairy's  cloak,  the  Children  saw  a  tall,  red  fellow 
looking  at  them  and  laughing  at  their  fears.  He  was 
dressed  in  scarlet  tights  and  spangles;  from  his  shoulders 
hung  silk  scarves  that  were  just  like  flames  when  he  waved 
them  with  his  long  arms;  and  his  hair  stood  up  on  his  head 
in  straight,  flaring  locks.  He  started  flinging  out  his  arms 
and  legs  and  jumping  round  the  room  like  a  madman. 

Tyltyl,  though  feeling  a  little  easier,  dared  not  yet  leave 
his  refuge.  Then  the  Fairy  Berylune  had  a  capital  idea :  she 
pointed  her  wand  at  the  tap;  and  at  once  there  appeared  a 
young  girl  who  wept  like  a  regular  fountain.  It  was  Water. 
She  was  very  pretty,  but  she  looked  extremely  sad;  and  she 
sang  so  sweetly  that  it  was  like  the  rippling  of  a  spring. 
Her  long  hair,  which  fell  to  her  feet,  might  have  been  made 
of  sea-weed.  She  had  nothing  on  but  her  bed-gown ;  but  the 
water  that  streamed  over  her  clothed  her  in  shimmering 
colours.  She  hesitated  at  first  and  gave  a  glance  around 
her;  then,  catching  sight  of  Fire  still  whirling  about  like  a 


18  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

great  madcap,  she  made  an  angry  and  indignant  rush  at  him, 
spraying  his  face,  splashing  and  wetting  him  with  all  her 
might.  Fire  flew  into  a  rage  and  began  to  smoke.  Never- 
theless, as  he  found  himself  suddenly  thwarted  by  his 
old  enemy,  he  thought  it  wiser  to  retire  to  a  corner. 
Water  also  beat  a  retreat;  and  it  seemed  as  though  peace 
would  be  restored  once  more. 

The  two  Children,  at  last  recovering  from  their  alarm, 
were  asking  the  Fairy  what  was  going  to  happen  next,  when 
a  startling  noise  of  breaking  crockery  made  them  look  round 
towards  the  table.  What  a  surprise !  The  milk-jug  lay  on 
the  floor,  smashed  into  a  thousand  fragments,  and  from  the 
pieces  rose  a  charming  lady,  who  gave  little  screams  of  terror 
and  clasped  her  hands  and  turned  up  her  eyes  with  a  be- 
seeching glance. 

Tyltyl  hastened  to  console  her,  for  he  at  once  knew  that 
she  was  Milk;  and,  as  he  was  very  fond  of  her,  he  gave 
her  a  good  kiss.  She  was  as  fresh  and  pretty  as  a  little 
dairy-maid;  and  a  delicious  scent  of  hay  came  from  her 
white  frock  all  covered  with  cream. 

Meanwhile,  Mytyl  was  watching  the  sugar-loaf,  which 
also  seemed  to  be  coming  to  life.  Packed  in  its  blue  paper 
wrapper,  on  a  shelf  near  the  door,  it  was  swaying  from  left 
to  right  and  from  right  to  left  without  any  result.     But  at 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  19 

last  a  long  thin  arm  was  seen  to  come  out,  followed  by  a 
peaked  head,  which  split  the  paper,  and  by  another  arm  and 
two  long  legs  that  seemed  never  to  end!  .  .  .  Oh,  you 
should  have  seen  how  funny  Sugar  looked:  so  funny,  in- 
deed, that  the  Children  could  not  help  laughing  in  his  face ! 
And  yet  they  would  have  liked  to  be  civil  to  him,  for  they 
heard  the  Fairy  introducing  him  in  these  words : 

"This,  Tyltyl,  is  the  soul  of  Sugar.  His  pockets  are 
crammed  with  sugar  and  each  of  his  fingers  is  a  sugar- 
stick." 

How  wonderful  to  have  a  friend  all  made  of  sugar,  of! 
whom  you  can  bite  a  piece  whenever  you  feel  inclined ! 

"Bow,  wow,  wow!  .  .  .  Good-morning!  Good-morning, 
my  little  god!  .  .  .  At  last,  at  last  we  can  talk!  .  .  .  Bark 
and  wag  my  tail  as  I  might,  you  never  understood !  .  .  .  I 
love  you!     I  love  you!" 

Who  can  this  extraordinary  person  be,  who  jostles  every- 
body and  fills  the  house  with  his  noisy  gaiety*?  We  know 
him  at  once.  It  is  Tylo,  the  good  Dog  who  tries  his  hardest 
to  understand  mankind,  the  good-natured  Animal  who 
goes  with  the  Children  to  the  forest,  the  faithful  guardian 
who  protects  the  door,  the  staunch  friend  who  is  ever  true 
and  ever  loyal!  Here  he  comes  walking  on  his  hind- 
paws,    as    on    a    pair    of    legs    too    short    for    him,  and 


20  'The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

beating  the  air  with  the  two  others,  making  gestures  like 
a  clumsy  little  man.  He  has  not  changed :  he  still  has  his 
smooth,  mustard-coloured  coat  and  his  jolly  bull-dog 
head,  with  the  black  muzzle,  but  he  is  much  bigger  and  then 
he  talks !  He  talks  as  fast  as  he  can,  as  though  he  wanted 
in  one  moment  to  avenge  his  whole  race,  which  has  been 
doomed  to  silence  for  centuries.  He  talks  of  everything, 
now  that  he  is  at  last  able  to  explain  himself;  and  it  is  a 
pretty  sight  to  see  him  kissing  his  little  master  and  mis- 
tress and  calling  them  "his  little  gods!"  He  sits  up,  he 
jumps  about  the  room,  knocking  against  the  furniture,  up- 
setting Mytyl  with  his  big  soft  paws,  lolling  his  tongue, 
wagging  his  tail  and  puffing  and  panting  as  though  he  were 
out  hunting.  We  at  once  see  his  simple,  generous  nature. 
Persuaded  of  his  own  importance,  he  fancies  that  he  alone 
is  indispensable  in  the  new  world  of  Things. 

After  making  all  the  fuss  he  wanted  of  the  Children, 
he  started  going  the  round  of  the  company,  distributing  the 
attentions  which  he  thought  that  none  could  do  without. 
His  joy,  now  set  free,  found  vent  without  restraint;  and, 
because  he  was  the  most  loving  of  creatures,  he  would  also 
have  been  the  happiest,  if,  in  becoming  human,  he  had  not, 
unfortunately,  retained  his  little  doggy  failings.  He  was 
jealous !     He  was  terribly  jealous ;  and  his  heart  felt  a  pang 


^he  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  21 

when  he  saw  Tylette,  the  Cat,  coming  to  life  in  her  turn  and 
being  petted  and  kissed  by  the  Children,  just  as  he  had  been ! 
Oh,  how  he  hated  the  Cat !  To  bear  the  sight  of  her  beside 
him,  to  see  her  always  sharing  in  the  affection  of  the  family: 
that  was  the  great  sacrifice  which  fate  demanded  of  him. 
He  accepted  it,  however,  without  a  word,  because  it  pleased 
his  little  gods ;  and  he  went  so  far  as  to  leave  her  alone.  But 
he  had  had  many  a  crime  on  his  conscience  because  of  her! 
Had  he  not,  one  evening,  crept  stealthily  into  Goody  Ber- 
lingot's  kitchen  in  order  to  throttle  her  old  tom-cat,  who  had 
never  done  him  any  harm?  Had  he  not  broken  the  back  of 
the  Persian  cat  at  the  Hall  opposite?  Did  he  not  some- 
times go  to  town  on  purpose  to  hunt  cats  and  put  an  end 
to  them,  all  to  wreak  his  spite?  And  now  Tylette  was  go- 
ing to  talk,  just  like  himself !  Tylette  would  be  his  equal  in 
the  new  world  that  was  opening  before  him ! 

"Oh,  there  is  no  justice  left  on  earth!"  was  his  bitter 
thought.     "There  is  no  justice  left !" 

In  the  meantime,  the  Cat,  who  had  begun  by  washing  her- 
self and  polishing  her  claws,  calmly  put  out  her  paw  to  the 
little  girl. 

She  really  was  a  very  pretty  cat;  and,  if  our  friend  Tylo's 
jealousy  had  not  been  such  an  ugly  feeling,  we  might  almost 
have  overlooked  it  for  once !     How  could  you  fail  to  be  at- 


22  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

tracted  by  Tylette's  eyes,  which  were  like  topaz  set  in 
emeralds'?  How  could  you  resist  the  pleasure  of  stroking 
the  wonderful  black  velvet  back*?  How  could  you  not  love 
her  grace,  her  gentleness  and  the  dignity  of  her  poses'? 

Smiling  gently  and  speaking  in  well-chosen  language, 
she  said  to  Mytyl  : 

"Good-morning,  miss!  .  .  .  How  well  you  look  this 
morning!   .  .  ." 

And  the  Children  patted  her  like  anything. 

Tylo  kept  watching  the  Cat  from  the  other  end  of  the 
room: 

"Now  that  she's  standing  on  her  hind-legs  like  a  man,"  he 
muttered,  "she  looks  just  like  the  Devil,  with  her  pointed 
ears,  her  long  tail  and  her  dress  as  black  as  ink!"  And  he 
could  not  help  growling  between  his  teeth.  "She's  also  like 
the  village  chimney-sweep,"  he  went  on,  "whom  I  loathe 
and  detest  and  whom  I  shall  never  take  for  a  real  man,  what- 
ever my  little  gods  may  say  .  .  .  It's  lucky,"  he  added, 
with  a  sigh,  "that  I  know  more  about  a  good  many  things 
than  they  do!" 

But  suddenly,  no  longer  able  to  master  himself,  he  flew 
at  the  Cat  and  shouted,  with  a  loud  laugh  that  was  more  like 
a  roar : 

"I'm  going  to  frighten  Tylette!     Bow,  wow,  wow!" 


'The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  23 

But  the  Cat,  who  was  dignified  even  when  still  an  animal, 
now  thought  herself  called  to  the  loftiest  destinies.  She 
considered  that  .the  time  had  come  to  raise  a  tall  bar- 
rier between  herself  and  the  Dog,  who  had  never  been 
more  than  an  ill-bred  person  in  her  eyes;  and,  stepping  back 
in  disdain,  she  just  said: 

"Sir,  I  don't  know  you." 

Tylo  gave  a  bound  under  the  insult,  whereupon  the  Cat 
bristled  up,  twisting  her  whiskers  under  her  little  pink  nose 
(for  she  was  very  proud  of  those  two  pale  blotches  which 
gave  a  special  touch  to  her  dark  beauty)  ;  and  then,  arching 
her  back  and  sticking  up  her  tail,  she  hissed  out,  "Ff  t !  Ff  t !" 
and  stood  stock-still  on  the  chest  of  drawers,  like  a  dragon 
on  the  lid  of  a  Chinese  vase. 

Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  screamed  with  laughter;  but  the  quar- 
rel would  certainly  have  had  a  bad  ending  if,  at  that  mo- 
ment, a  great  thing  had  not  happened.  At  eleven  o'clock  in 
the  evening,  in  the  middle  of  that  winter's  night,  a  great 
light,  the  light  of  the  noon-day  sun,  glowing  and  dazzling, 
burst  into  the  cottage. 

"Hullo,  there's  daylight!"  said  the  little  boy,  who  no 
longer  knew  what  to  make  of  things.  "What  will  Daddy 
say?" 

But,  before  the  Fairy  had  time  to  set  him  right,  Tyltyl 


24  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

understood;  and,  full  of  wonderment,  he  knelt  before  the 
latest  vision  that  bewitched  his  eyes. 

At  the  window,  in  the  center  of  a  great  halo  of  sunshine, 
there  rose  slowly,  like  a  tall  golden  sheaf,  a  maiden  of  sur- 
passing loveliness!  Gleaming  veils  covered  her  figure 
without  hiding  its  beauty;  her  bare  arms,  stretched  in  the 
attitude  of  giving,  seemed  transparent;  and  her  great  clear 
eyes  wrapped  all  upon  whom  they  fell  in  a  fond  embrace. 

"It's  the  Queen!"  said  Tyltyl. 

"It's  a  Fairy  Princess!"  cried  Mytyl,  kneeling  beside 
her  brother. 

"No,  my  Children,"  said  the  Fairy.     "It  is  Light!" 

Smiling,  Light  stepped  towards  the  two  little  ones.  She, 
the  Light  of  Heaven,  the  strength  and  beauty  of  the  Earth, 
was  proud  of  the  humble  mission  entrusted  to  her;  she,  never 
before  held  captive,  living  in  spaceand  bestowing  her  bounty 
upon  all  alike,  consented  to  be  confined,  for  a  brief  spell, 
within  a  human  shape,  so  as  to  lead  the  Children  out  into  the 
world  and  teach  them  to  know  that  other  Light,  the  Light  of 
the  Mind,  which  we  never  see,  but  which  helps  us  to  see  all 
things  that  are. 

"It  is  Light !"  exclaimed  the  Things  and  the  Animals ;  and, 
as  they  all  loved  her,  they  began  to  dance  around  her  with 
cries  of  pleasure. 


The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  2$ 

Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  capered  with  joy.  Never  had  they  pic- 
tured so  amusing  and  so  pretty  a  party;  and  they  shouted 
louder  than  all  the  rest. 

Then  what  was  bound  to  happen  came.  Suddenly,  three 
knocks  were  heard  against  the  wall,  loud  enough  to  throw 
the  house  down!  It  was  Daddy  Tyl,  who  had  been  waked 
up  by  the  din  and  who  was  now  threatening  to  come  and 
put  a  stop  to  it. 

"Turn  the  diamond!"  cried  the  Fairy  to  Tyltyl. 

Our  hero  hastened  to  obey,  but  he  had  not  the  knack  of  it 
yet;  besides,  his  hand  shook  at  the  thought  that  his  father 
was  coming.  In  fact,  he  was  so  awkward  that  he  nearly 
broke  the  works. 

"Not  so  quick,  not  so  quick!"  said  the  Fairy.  "Oh  dear, 
you've  turned  it  too  briskly:  they  will  not  have  time  to  re* 
sume  their  places  and  we  shall  have  a  lot  of  bother!" 

There  was  a  general  stampede.  The  walls  of  the  cottage 
lost  their  splendour.  All  ran  hither  and  thither,  to  return  to 
their  proper  shape :  Fire  could  not  find  his  chimney ;  Water 
ran  about  looking  for  her  tap;  Sugar  stood  moaning  in  front 
of  his  torn  wrapper;  and  Bread,  the  biggest  of  the  loaves, 
was  unable  to  squeeze  into  his  pan,  in  which  the  other  loaves 
had  jumped  higgledy-piggledy,  taking  up  all  the  room.  As 
for  the  Dog,  he  had  grown  too  large  for  the  hole  in  his  ken- 


26  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

nel;  and  the  Cat  also  could  not  get  into  her  basket.  The 
Hours  alone,  who  were  accustomed  always  to  run  faster 
than  Man  wished,  had  slipped  back  into  the  clock  without 
delay. 

Light  stood  motionless  and  unruffled,  vainly  setting  an 
example  of  calmness  to  the  others,  who  were  all  weeping 
and  wailing  around  the  Fairy: 

"What  is  going  to  happen?"  they  asked.  "Is  there  any 
danger?" 

"Well,"  said  the  Fairy,  "I  am  bound  to  tell  you  the  truth: 
all  those  who  accompany  the  two  Children  will  die  at  the 
end  of  the  journey." 

They  began  to  cry  like  anything,  all  except  the  Dog,  who 
was  delighted  at  remaining  human  as  long  as  possible  and 
who  had  already  taken  his  stand  next  to  Light,  so  as  to  be 
sure  of  going  in  front  of  his  little  master  and  mistress. 

At  that  moment,  there  came  a  knocking  even  more  dread- 
ful than  before. 

"There's  Daddy  again!"  said  Tyltyl.  "He's  getting  up, 
this  time ;  I  can  hear  him  walking  .  .  ." 

"You  see,"  said  the  Fairy,  "you  have  no  choice  now;  it  is 
too  late;  you  must  all  start  with  us  .  .  .  But  you,  Fire,  don't 
come  near  anybody;  you,  Dog,  don't  tease  the  Cat;  you, 
Water,  try  not  to  run  all  over  the  place;  and  you,  Sugar, 


'The  Woodcutter  s  Cottage  27 

stop  crying,  unless  you  want  to  melt.  Bread  shall  carry 
the  cage  in  which  to  put  the  Blue  Bird;  and  you  shall  all 
come  to  my  house,  where  I  will  dress  the  Animals  and  the 
Things  properly  .  .  .  Let  us  go  out  this  way!" 

As  she  spoke,  she  pointed  her  wand  at  the  window,  which 
lengthened  magically  downwards,  like  a  door.  They  all 
went  out  on  tip-toe,  after  which  the  window  resumed  its 
usual  shape.  And  so  it  came  about  that,  on  Christmas 
Night,  in  the  clear  light  of  the  moon,  while  the  bells  rang 
out  lustily,  proclaiming  the  birth  of  Jesus,  Tyltyl  and 
Mytyl  went  in  search  of  the  Blue  Bird  that  was  to  bring 
them  happiness. 


CHAPTER  II 

AT    THE    FAIRY'S 

The  Fairy  Berylune's  Palace  stood  at  the  top  of  a  very  high 
mountain,  on  the  way  to  the  moon.  It  was  so  near  that,  on 
summer  nights,  when  the  sky  was  clear,  you  could  plainly 
see  the  moon's  mountains  and  valleys,  lakes  and  seas  from 
the  terrace  of  the  palace.  Here  the  Fairy  studied  the  stars 
and  read  their  secrets,  for  it  was  long  since  the  Earth  had 
had  anything  to  teach  her. 

"This  old  planet  no  longer  interests  me!"  she  used  to  say 
to  her  friends,  the  giants  of  the  mountain.  "The  men  upon 
it  still  live  with  their  eyes  shut!  Poor  things,  I  pity  them! 
I  go  down  among  them  now  and  then,  but  it  is  out  of  charity, 
to  try  and  save  the  little  children  from  the  fatal  misfortune 
that  awaits  them  in  the  darkness." 

This  explains  why  she  had  come  and  knocked  at  the  door 
of  Daddy  Tyl's  cottage  on  Christmas  Eve. 

And  now  to  return  to  our  travellers.  They  had  hardly 
reached  the  high-road,  when  the  Fairy  remembered  that  they 
could  not  walk  like  that  through  the  village,  which  was  still 

31 


32  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

lit  up  because  of  the  feast.  But  her  store  of  knowledge  was 
so  great  that  all  her  wishes  were  fulfilled  at  once.  She 
pressed  lightly  on  Tyltyl's  head  and  willed  that  they  should 
all  be  carried  by  magic  to  her  palace.  Then  and  there,  a 
cloud  of  fireflies  surrounded  our  companions  and  wafted 
them  gently  towards  the  sky.  They  were  at  the  Fairy's 
palace  before  they  had  recovered  from  their  surprise. 

"Follow  me,"  she  said  and  led  them  through  chambers  and 
passages  all  in  gold  and  silver. 

They  stopped  in  a  large  room  surrounded  with  mirrors  on 
every  side  and  containing  an  enormous  wardrobe  with  light 
creeping  through  its  chinks.  The  Fairy  Berylune  took  a 
diamond  key  from  her  pocket  and  opened  the  wardrobe. 
One  cry  of  amazement  burst  from  every  throat.  Precious 
stuffs  were  seen  piled  one  on  the  top  of  the  other :  mantles 
covered  with  gems,  dresses  of  every  sort  and  every  country, 
pearl  coronets,  emerald  necklaces,  ruby  bracelets  .  .  . 
Never  had  the  Children  beheld  such  riches!  As  for  the 
Things,  their  state  was  rather  one  of  utter  bewilderment; 
and  this  was  only  natural,  when  you  think  that  they  were 
seeing  the  world  for  the  first  time  and  that  it  showed  itself 
to  them  in  such  a  queer  way. 

The  Fairy  helped  them  make  their  choice.     Fire,  Sugar 
and  the  Cat  displayed  a  certain  decision  of  taste.     Fire,  who 


At  the  Fairy's  33 

only  cared  for  red,  at  once  chose  a  splendid  bright  red 
dress,  with  gold  spangles.  He  put  nothing  on  his  head,  for  - 
his  head  was  always  very  hot.  Sugar  could  not  stand  any- 
thing except  white  and  pale  blue:  bright  colors  jarred  on 
his  sweet  nature.  The  long  blue  and  white  dress  which  he 
selected  and  the  pointed  hat,  like  a  candle  extinguisher, 
which  he  wore  on  his  head  made  him  look  perfectly  ridicu- 
lous; but  he  was  too  silly  to  notice  it  and  kept  spinning  be- 
fore the  glass  like  a  top  and  admiring  himself  in  blissful 
ignorance. 

The  Cat,  who  was  always  a  lady  and  who  was  used  to  her 
dusky  garments,  reflected  that  black  always  looks  well,  in 
any  circumstance,  particularly  now,  when  they  were  travel- 
ling without  luggage.  She  therefore  put  on  a  suit  of  black 
tights,  with  jet  embroidery,  hung  a  long  velvet  cloak  from 
her  shoulders  and  perched  a  large  cavalier  hat,  with  a  long 
feather,  on  her  neat  little  head.  She  next  asked  for  a  pair 
of  soft  kid  boots,  in  memory  of  Puss-in-Boots,  her  distin- 
guished ancestor,  and  put  a  pair  of  gloves  on  her  fore-paws, 
to  protect  them  from  the  dust  of  the  roads. 

Thus  attired,  she  took  a  satisfied  glance  at  the  mirror. 
Then,  a  little  nervously,  with  an  anxious  eye  and  a  quiver- 
ing pink  nose,  she  hastily  invited  Sugar  and  Fire  to  take  the 
air  with  her.     So  they  all  three  walked  out,  while  the  others 


34  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

went  on  dressing.  Let  us  follow  them  for  a  moment,  for 
we  have  already  grown  to  like  our  brave  little  Tyltyl  and 
we  shall  want  to  hear  anything  that  is  likely  to  help  or  delay 
his  undertaking. 

After  passing  through  several  splendid  galleries,  hung 
like  balconies  in  the  sky,  our  three  cronies  stopped  in  the 
hall ;  and  the  Cat  at  once  addressed  the  meeting  in  a  hushed 
voice : 

"I  have  brought  you  here,"  she  said,  "in  order  to  discuss 
the  position  in  which  we  are  placed.  Let  us  make  the  most 
of  our  last  moment  of  liberty  .  .  ." 

But  she  was  interrupted  by  a  furious  uproar: 

"Bow,  wow,  wow!" 

"There  now!"  cried  the  Cat.  "There's  that  idiot  of  a 
Dog!  He  has  scented  us  out!  We  can't  get  a  minute's 
peace.  Let  us  hide  behind  the  balustrade.  He  had  better 
not  hear  what  I  have  to  say  to  you." 

"It's  too  late,"  said  Sugar,  who  was  standing  by  the  door. 

And,  sure  enough,  Tylo  was  coming  up,  jumping,  barking, 
panting  and  delighted. 

The  Cat,  when  she  saw  him,  turned  away  in  disgust : 

"He  has  put  on  the  livery  of  one  of  the  footmen  of  Cinder- 
ella's coach  ...  It  is  just  the  thing  for  him :  he  has  the  soul 
of  a  flunkey!" 


At  the  Fairy's  35 

She  ended  these  words  with  a  "Fft!  Fft!"  and,  stroking 
her  whiskers,  took  up  her  stand,  with  a  defiant  air,  between 
Sugar  and  Fire.  The  good  Dog  did  not  see  her  little  game. 
He  was  wholly  wrapped  up  in  the  pleasure  of  being  gor- 
geously arrayed;  and  he  danced  round  and  round.  It  was 
really  funny  to  see  his  velvet  coat  whirling  like  a  merry-go- 
round,  with  the  skirts  opening  every  now  and  then  and 
showing  his  little  stumpy  tail,  which  was  all  the  more  ex- 
pressive as  it  had  to  express  itself  very  briefly.  For  I  need 
hardly  tell  you  that  Tylo,  like  every  well-bred  bull-dog, 
had  had  his  tail  and  his  ears  cropped  as  a  puppy. 

Poor  fellow,  he  had  long  envied  the  tails  of  his  brother 
dogs,  which  allowed  them  to  use  a  much  larger  and  more 
varied  vocabulary.  But  physical  deficiencies  and  the 
hardships  of  fortune  strengthen  our  innermost  qualities. 
Tylo's  soul,  having  no  outward  means  of  expressing  it- 
self, had  only  gained  through  silence;  and  his  look, 
which  was  always  filled  with  love,  had  become  very 
eloquent. 

To-day  his  big  dark  eyes  glistened  with  delight ;  he  had 
suddenly  changed  into  a  man!  He  was  all  over  magnifi- 
cent clothes;  and  he  was  about  to  perform  a  grand  errand 
across  the  world  in  company  with  the  gods ! 

"There!"  he  said.     "There!     Aren't  we  fine!  .  .  .  Just 


36  Tke  Children 's  Blue  Bird 

look  at  this  lace  and  embroidery!  .  .  .  It's  real  gold  and  no 
mistake!" 

He  did  not  see  that  the  others  were  laughing  at  him,  for, 
to  tell  the  truth,  he  did  look  very  comical ;  but,  like  all  sim- 
ple creatures,  he  had  no  sense  of  humour.  He  was  so  proud 
of  his  natural  garment  of  yellow  hair  that  he  had  put  on 
no  waistcoat,  in  order  that  no  one  might  have  a  doubt  as  to 
where  he  sprang  from.  For  the  same  reason,  he  had  kept  his 
collar,  with  his  address  on  it.  A  big  red  velvet  coat,  heavily 
braided  with  gold-lace,  reached  to  his  knees ;  and  the  large 
pockets  on  either  side  would  enable  him,  he  thought,  always 
to  carry  a  few  provisions ;  for  Tylo  was  very  greedy.  On  his 
left  ear,  he  wore  a  little  round  cap  with  an  osprey-feather 
in  it  and  he  kept  it  on  his  big  square  head  by  means  of  an 
elastic  which  cut  his  fat,  loose  cheeks  in  two.  His  other 
ear  remained  free.  Cropped  close  to  his  head  in  the  shape 
of  a  little  paper  screw-bag,  this  ear  was  the  watchful  re- 
ceiver into  which  all  the  sounds  of  life  fell,  like  pebbles  dis- 
turbing its  rest. 

He  had  also  encased  his  hind-legs  in  a  pair  of  patent- 
leather  riding-boots,  with  white  tops;  but  his  fore-paws  he 
considered  of  such  use  that  nothing  would  have  induced  him 
to  put  them  into  gloves.  Tylo  had  too  natural  a  character 
to  change  his  little  ways  all  in  a  day;  and,  in  spite  of  his 


At  the  Fairy's  37 

new-blown  honours,  he  allowed  himself  to  do  undignified 
things.  He  was  at  the  present  moment  lying  on  the  steps 
of  the  hall,  scratching  the  ground  and  sniffing  at  the  wall, 
when  suddenly  he  gave  a  start  and  began  to  whine  and 
whimper !  His  lower  lip  shook  nervously  as  though  he  were 
going  to  cry. 

"What's  the  matter  with  the  idiot  now?'  asked  the 
Cat,  who  was  watching  him  out  of  the  corner  of  her 
eye. 

But  she  at  once  understood.  A  very  sweet  song  came 
from  the  distance ;  and  Tylo  could  not  endure  music.  The 
song  drew  nearer,  a  girl's  fresh  voice  filled  the  shadows 
of  the  lofty  arches  and  Water  appeared.  Tall,  slender  and 
white  as  a  pearl,  she  seemed  to  glide  rather  than  to  walk. 
Her  movements  were  so  soft  and  graceful  that  they  were 
suspected  rather  than  seen.  A  beautiful  silvery  dress 
waved  and  floated  around  her;  and  her  hair  decked  with 
corals  flowed  below  her  knees. 

When  Fire  caught  sight  of  her,  like  the  rude  and  spiteful 
fellow  that  he  was,  he  sneered : 

"She's  not  brought  her  umbrella!" 

But  Water,  who  was  really  quite  witty  and  who  knew 
that  she  was  the  stronger  of  the  two,  chaffed  him  pleasantly 
and  said,  with  a  glance  at  his  glowing  nose : 


38  ^Tke  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"I  beg  your  pardon4?  .  .  .  I  thought  you  might  be  speak- 
ing of  a  great  red  nose  I  saw  the  other  day!   .  .  ." 

The  others  began  to  laugh  and  poke  fun  at  Fire,  whose 
face  was  always  like  a  red-hot  coal.  Fire  angrily  jumped 
to  the  ceiling,  keeping  his  revenge  for  later.  Meanwhile, 
the  Cat  went  up  to  Water,  very  cautiously,  and  paid  her 
ever  so  many  compliments  on  her  dress.  I  need  hardly  tell 
you  that  she  did  not  mean  a  word  of  it;  but  she  wished  to 
be  friendly  with  everybody,  for  she  wanted  their  votes, 
to  carry  out  her  plan;  and  she  was  anxious  at  not  seeing 
Bread,  because  she  did  not  want  to  speak  before  the  meeting 
was  complete : 

"What  can  he  be  doing?"  she  mewed,  time  after  time. 

"He  was  making  an  endless  fuss  about  choosing  his  dress," 
said  the  Dog.  "At  last,  he  decided  in  favour  of  a  Turkish 
robe,  with  a  scimitar  and  a  turban." 

The  words  were  not  out  of  his  mouth,  when  a  shapeless 
and  ridiculous  bulk,  clad  in  all  the  colours  of  the  rain- 
bow, came  and  blocked  the  narrow  door  of  the  hall.  It 
was  the  enormous  stomach  of  Bread,  who  filled  the  whole 
opening.  He  kept  on  knocking  himself,  without  knowing 
why;  for  he  was  not  very  clever  and,  besides,  he  was  not 
yet  used  to  moving  about  in  human  beings'  houses.    At 


They  all  looked  at  her  with  a  bewildered  air.     They  understood  that  it 

was  a  solemn  moment 


At  the  Fairy's  39 

last,  it  occurred  to  him  to  stoop;  and,  by  squeezing  through 
sideways,  he  managed  to  make  his  way  into  the  hall. 

It  was  certainly  not  a  triumphal  entry,  but  he  was  pleased 
with  it  all  the  same: 

"Here  I  am!"  he  said.  "Here  I  am !  I  have  put  on  Blue- 
beard's finest  dress.  .  .  .  What  do  you  think  of  this*?" 

The  Dog  began  to  frisk  around  him:  he  thought  Bread 
magnificent!  That  yellow  velvet  costume,  covered  all 
over  with  silver  crescents,  reminded  Tylo  of  the  delicious 
horse-shoe  rolls  which  he  loved;  and  the  huge,  gaudy  turban 
on  Bread's  head  was  really  very  like  a  fairy  bun! 

"How  nice  he  looks !"  he  cried.     "How  nice  he  looks!" 

Bread  was  shyly  followed  by  Milk.  Her  simple  mind 
had  made  her  prefer  her  cream  dress  to  all  the  finery  which 
the  Fairy  suggested  to  her.  She  was  really  a  model  of 
humility. 

Bread  was  beginning  to  talk  about  the  dresses  of  Tyltyl, 
Light  and  Mytyl,  when  the  Cat  cut  him  short  in  a  masterful 
voice : 

"We  shall  see  them  in  good  time,"  she  said.  "Stop  chat- 
tering, listen  to  me,  time  presses :  our  future  is  at  stake.  .  ." 

They  all  looked  at  her  with  a  bewildered  air.  They  un* 
derstood  that  it  was  a  solemn  moment,  but  the  human  Ian- 


40  tfhe  Children's  Blue  Bird 

guage  was  still  full  of  mystery  to  them.  Sugar  wriggled 
his  long  fingers  as  a  sign  of  distress;  Bread  patted  his  huge 
stomach;  Water  lay  on  the  floor  and  seemed  to  suffer  from 
the  most  profound  despair;  and  Milk  only  had  eyes  for 
Bread,  who  had  been  her  friend  for  ages  and  ages. 

The  Cat,  becoming  impatient,  continued  her  speech: 

"The  Fairy  has  just  said  it,  the  end  of  this  journey  will, 
at  the  same  time,  mark  the  end  of  our  lives.  It  is  our 
business,  therefore,  to  spin  the  journey  out  as  long  as  pos- 
sible and  by  every  means  in  our  power.  .  . 

Bread,  who  was  afraid  of  being  eaten  as  soon  as  he  was 
no  longer  a  man,  hastened  to  express  approval;  but  the  Dog, 
who  was  standing  a  little  way  off,  pretending  not  to  hear, 
began  to  growl  deep  down  in  his  soul.  He  well  knew  what 
the  Cat  was  driving  at;  and,  when  Tylette  ended  her  speech 
with  the  words,  "We  must  at  all  costs  prolong  the  journey 
and  prevent  Blue  Bird  from  being  found,  even  if  it  means 
endangering  the  lives  of  the  Children,"  the  good  Dog,  obey- 
ing only  the  promptings  of  his  heart,  leapt  at  the  Cat  to 
bite  her.  Sugar,  Bread  and  Fire  flung  themselves  between 
them :  , 

"Order!  Order!"  said  Bread  pompously.  "I'm  in  the 
chair  at  this  meeting." 

"Who  made  you  chairman?"  stormed  Fire. 


At  the  Fairy's  41 

"Who  asked  you  to  interfere?"  asked  Water,  whirling 
her  wet  hair  over  Fire. 

"Excuse  me,"  said  Sugar,  shaking  all  over,  in  conciliatory 
tones.  "Excuse  me.  .  .  .  This  is  a  serious  moment.  .  .  . 
Let  us  talk  things  over  in  a  friendly  way." 

"I  quite  agree  with  Sugar  and  the  Cat,"  said  Bread,  as 
though  that  ended  the  matter. 

"This  is  ridiculous!"  said  the  Dog,  barking  and  showing 
his  teeth.  "There  is  Man  and  that's  all !  .  .  .  We  have  to 
obey  him  and  do  as  he  tells  us!  ...  I  recognise  no  one  but 
him !  .  .  .  Hurrah  for  Man !  .  .  .  Man  for  ever !  ...  In 
life  or  death,  all  for  Man !   .  .  .  Man  is  everything!   .  .  ." 

But  the  Cat's  shrill  voice  rose  above  all  the  others.  She 
was  full  of  grudges  against  Man  and  she  wanted  to  make 
use  of  the  short  spell  of  humanity  which  she  now  enjoyed  to 
avenge  her  whole  race : 

"All  of  us  here  present,"  she  cried,  "Animals,  Things 
and  Elements,  possess  a  soul  which  Man  does  not  yet  know. 
That  is  why  we  retain  a  remnant  of  independence;  but,  :'f 
he  finds  the  Blue  Bird,  he  will  know  all,  he  will  see  all  and 
we  shall  be  completely  at  his  mercy.  .  .  .  Remember  the 
time  when  we  wandered  at  liberty  upon  the  face  of  the 
earth!  .  .  ."  But,  suddenly  her  face  changed,  her  voice 
sank  to  a  whisper  and  she  hissed,  "Look  out'     I  hear  the 


42  H he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

Fairy  and  Light  coming.  I  need  hardly  tell  you  that  Light 
has  taken  sides  with  Man  and  means  to  stand  by  him;  she 
is  our  worst  enemy.  .  .  .  Be  careful!" 

But  our  friends  had  had  no  practice  in  trickery  and,  feel- 
ing themselves  in  the  wrong,  took  up  such  ridiculous  and 
uncomfortable  attitudes  that  the  Fairy,  the  moment  she 
appeared  upon  the  threshold,  exclaimed: 

"What  are  you  doing  in  that  corner?  .  .  .  You  look  like 
a  pack  of  conspirators!" 

Quite  scared  and  thinking  that  the  Fairy  had  already 
guessed  their  wicked  intentions,  they  fell  upon  their  knees 
before  her.  Luckily  for  them,  the  Fairy  hardly  gave  a 
thought  to  what  was  passing  through  their  little  minds. 
She  had  come  to  explain  the  first  part  of  the  journey  to  the 
Children  and  to  tell  each  of  the  others  what  to  do.  Tyltyl 
and  Mytyl  stood  hand  in  hand  in  front  of  her,  looking  a 
little  frightened  and  a  little  awkward  in  their  fine  clothes. 
They  stared  at  each  other  in  childish  admiration. 

The  little  girl  was  wearing  a  yellow  silk  frock  em- 
broidered with  pink  posies  and  covered  with  gold  spangles. 
On  her  head  was  a  lovely  orange  velvet  cap ;  and  a  starched 
muslin  tucker  covered  her  little  arms.  Tyltyl  was  dressed 
in  a  red  jacket  and  blue  knickerbockers,  both  of  velvet; 
and  of  course  he  wore  the  wonderful  little  hat  on  his  head. 


Delighted  with  the  importance  of  his  duty,  undid  the  top 
of  his  robe,  drew  his  scimitar  and  cut  two  slices  out  of 
his  stomach 


At  the  Fairy' 's  43 

The  Fairy  said  to  them: 

"It  is  just  possible  that  the  Blue  Bird  is  hiding  at  your 
grandparents'  in  the  Land  of  Memory;  so  you  will  go  there 
first." 

"But  how  shall  we  see  them,  if  they  are  dead*?"  asked 
Tyltyl. 

Then  the  good  Fairy  explained  that  they  would  not  be 
really  dead  until  their  grandchildren  ceased  to  think  of 
them: 

"Men  do  not  know  this  secret,"  she  added.  "But,  thanks 
to  the  diamond,  you,  Tyltyl,  will  see  that  the  dead  whom 
we  remember  live  as  happily  as  though  they  were  not 
dead." 

"Are  you  coming  with  us?"  asked  the  boy,  turning  to 
Light,  who  stood  in  the  doorway  and  lit  up  all  the  hall. 

"No,"  said  the  Fairy.  "Light  must  not  look  at  the  past. 
Her  energies  must  be  devoted  to  the  future!" 

The  two  Children  were  starting  on  their  way,  when  they 
discovered  that  they  were  very  hungry.  The  Fairy  at  once 
ordered  Bread  to  give  them  something  to  eat;  and  that 
big,  fat  fellow,  delighted  with  the  importance  of  his  duty, 
undid  the  top  of  his  robe,  drew  his  scimitar  and  cut  two 
slices  out  of  his  stomach.  The  Children  screamed  with 
laughter.     Tylo  dropped  his  gloomy  thoughts  for  a  moment 


44  fhe  Children's  Blue  Bird 

and  begged  for  a  bit  of  bread;  and  everybody  struck  up  the 
farewell  chorus.  Sugar,  who  was  very  full  of  himself,  also 
wanted  to  impress  the  company  and,  breaking  off  two  of 
his    fingers,    handed    them    to    the    astonished    Children. 

As  they  were  all  moving  towards  the  door,  the  Fairy 
Berylune  stopped  them: 

"Not  to-day,"  she  said.  "The  children  must  go  alone. 
It  would  be  indiscreet  to  accompany  them;  they  are 
going  to  spend  the  evening  with  their  late  family.  Come, 
be  off!  Good-bye,  dear  children,  and  mind  that  you  are 
back  in  good  time:  it  is  extremely  important!" 

The  two  Children  took  each  other  by  the  hand  and,  carry- 
ing the  big  cage,  passed  out  of  the  hall;  and  their  com- 
panions, at  a  sign  from  the  Fairy,  filed  in  front  of  her  to 
return  to  the  palace.  Our  friend  Tylo  was  the  only  one 
who  did  not  answer  to  his  name.  The  moment  he  heard 
the  Fairy  say  that  the  Children  were  to  go  alone,  he  had 
made  up  his  mind  to  go  and  look  after  them,  whatever  hap- 
pened; and,  while  the  others  were  saying  good-bye,  he  hid 
behind  the  door.  But  the  poor  fellow  had  reckoned  without 
the  all-seeing  eyes  of  the  Fairy  Berylune. 

"Tylo!"  she  cried.     "Tylo!     Here!" 

And  the  poor  Dog,  who  had  so  long  been  used  to  obey, 
dared  not  resist  the  command  and  came,  with  his  tail  be- 


"W, 


Sugar  also  wanted  to  impress  the  company  and,  breaking 
off  two  of  his  fingers,  handed  them  to  the  astonished 
Children 


At  the  Fairy's  45 

tween  his  legs,  to  take  his  place  among  the  others.  He 
howled  with  despair  when  he  saw  his  little  master  and  mis- 
tress swallowed  up  in  the  great  gold  staircase. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE    LAND  OF   MEMORY 

The  Fairy  Berylune  had  told  the  Children  that  the  Land 
of  Memory  was  not  far  off;  but  to  reach  it  you  had  to  go 
through  a  forest  that  was  so  dense  and  so  old  that  your 
eyes  could  not  see  the  tops  of  the  trees.  It  was  always 
shrouded  in  a  heavy  mist;  and  the  Children  would  certainly 
have  lost  their  way,  if  the  Fairy  had  not  said  to  them  be- 
forehand : 

"It  is  straight  ahead;  and  there  is  only  one  road." 

The  ground  was  carpeted  with  flowers  which  were  all 
alike:  they  were  snow-white  pansies  and  very  pretty;  but, 
as  they  never  saw  the  sun,  they  had  no  scent. 

Those  little  flowers  comforted  the  Children,  who  felt  ex- 
tremely lonely.  A  great  mysterious  silence  surrounded 
them;  and  they  trembled  a  little  with  a  very  pleasant  sense 
of  fear  which  they  had  never  felt  before. 

"Let's  take  Granny  a  bunch  of  flowers,"  said  Mytyl. 

"That's  a  good  idea !     She  will  be  pleased !"  cried  Tyltyl. 

And,  as  they  walked  along,  the  Children  gathered  a  beau- 

49 


50  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

tiful  white  nosegay.  The  dear  little  things  did  not  know 
that  every  pansy  (which  means  "a  thought")  that  they 
picked  brought  them  nearer  to  their  grandparents;  and  they 
soon  saw  before  them  a  large  oak  with  a  notice-board  nailed 
to  it. 

"Here  we  are !"  cried  the  boy  in  triumph,  as,  climbing  up 
on  a  root,  he  read : 

lt<Tke  Land  of  Memory." 

They  had  arrived;  but  they  turned  to  every  side  without 
seeing  a  thing: 

"I  can  see  nothing  at  all !"  whimpered  Mytyl.  "I'm  cold ! 
.  .  .  I'm  tired!   .  .  .  I  don't  want  to  travel  any  more!" 

Tyltyl,  who  was  wholly  wrapped  up  in  his  errand,  lost 
his  temper : 

"Come,  don't  keep  on  crying  just  like  Water!  .  .  .  You 
ought  to  be  ashamed  of  yourself!"  he  said.  "There! 
Look!     Look!     The  fog  is  lifting!" 

And,  sure  enough,  the  mist  parted  before  their  eyes,  like 
veils  torn  by  an  invisible  hand;  the  big  trees  faded  away, 
everything  vanished  and,  instead,  there  appeared  a  pretty 
little  peasant's  cottage,  covered  with  creepers  and  standing 
in  a  little  garden  filled  with  flowers  and  with  trees  all  over 
fruit. 


v& 


Everything  vanished  and,  instead,  there  appeared  a  pretty  little 

peasant's  cottage 


tn 


The  Land  of  Memory  51 

The  Children  at  once  knew  the  dear  cow  in  the  orchard, 
the  watch-dog  at  the  door,  the  blackbird  in  his  wicker  cage : 
and  everything  was  steeped  in  a  pale  light  and  a  warm 
and  balmy  air. 

Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  stood  amazed.  So  that  was  the  Land 
of  Memory !  What  lovely  weather  it  was !  And  how  nice 
it  felt  to  be  there !  They  at  once  made  up  their  minds  to 
come  back  often,  now  that  they  knew  the  way.  But  how 
great  was  their  happiness  when  the  last  veil  disappeared 
and  they  saw,  at  a  few  steps  from  them,  Grandad  and 
Granny  sitting  on  a  bench,  sound  asleep.  They  clapped 
their  hands  and  called  out  gleefully : 

"It's  Grandad!  It's  Granny!  .  .  .  There  they  are! 
There  they  are !" 

But  they  were  a  little  scared  by  this  great  piece  of  magic 
and  dared  not  move  from  behind  the  tree;  and  they  stood 
looking  at  the  dear  old  couple,  who  woke  up  gently  and 
slowly  under  their  eyes.  Then  they  heard  Granny  Tyl's 
trembling  voice  say: 

"  I  have  a  notion  that  our  grandchildren  who  are  still  alive 
are  coming  to  see  us  to-day." 

And  Gaffer  Tyl  answered: 

"They  are  certainly  thinking  of  us,  for  I  feel  queer  and 
I  have  pins  and  needles  in  my  legs." 


52  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"I  think  they  must  be  quite  near,"  said  Granny,  "for  I 
see  tears  of  joy  dancing  before  my  eyes  and  .  .  ." 

Granny  had  not  time  to  finish  her  sentence.  The  Chil- 
dren were  in  her  arms!  .  .  .  What  joy!  What  wild  kisses 
and  huggings!  What  a  wonderful  surprise!  The  happi- 
ness was  too  great  for  words.  They  laughed  and  tried  to 
speak  and  kept  on  looking  at  one  another  with  delighted 
eyes:  it  was  so  glorious  and  so  unexpected  to  meet  again 
like  this.  When  the  first  excitement  was  over,  they  all 
began  to  talk  at  once : 

"How  tall  and  strong  you've  grown,  Tyltyl  !'J  said 
Granny. 

And  Grandad  cried : 

"And  Mytyl !  Just  look  at  her !  What  pretty  hair,  what 
pretty  eyes!" 

And  the  Children  danced  and  clapped  their  hands  and 
flung  themselves  by  turns  into  the  arms  of  one  or  the  other. 

At  last,  they  quieted  down  a  little;  and,  with  Mytyl 
nestling  against  Grandad's  chest  and  Tyltyl  comfortably 
perched  on  Granny's  knees,  they  began  to  talk  of  family 
affairs : 

"How  are  Daddy  and  Mummy  Tyl?"  asked  Granny. 

"Quite  well,  Granny,"  said  Tyltyl.  "They  were  asleep 
when  we  went  out." 


The  Land  of  Memory  53 

Granny  gave  them  fresh  kisses  and  said: 

"My  word,  how  pretty  they  are  and  how  nice  and  clean ! 
.  .  .  Why  don't  you  come  to  see  us  oftener4?  It  is  months 
and  months  now  that  you  have  forgotten  us  and  that  we 
have  seen  nobody.  .  .  ." 

"We  couldn't,  Granny,"  said  Tyltyl,  "and  to-day  it's 
only  because  of  the  Fairy  .  .  ." 

"We  are  always  here,"  said  Granny  Tyl,  "waiting  for  a 
visit  from  those  who  are  alive.  The  last  time  you  were 
here  was  on  All-hallows.  .  .  ." 

"All-hallows'?  We  didn't  go  out  that  day,  for  we  both 
had  colds!" 

"But  you  thought  of  us!  And,  every  time  you  think 
of  us,  we  wake  up  and  see  you  again." 

Tyltyl  remembered  that  the  Fairy  had  told  him  this.  He 
had  not  thought  it  possible  then;  but  now,  with  his  head 
on  the  heart  of  the  dear  Granny  whom  he  had  missed  so 
much,  he  began  to  understand  things  and  he  felt  that  his 
grandparents  had  not  left  him  altogether.     He  asked: 

"So  you  are  not  really  dead?  .  .  ." 

The  old  couple  burst  out  laughing.  When  they  ex- 
changed their  life  on  earth  for  another  and  a  much  nicer 
and  more  beautiful  life,  they  had  forgotten  the  word 
"dead." 


54  tfhe  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"What  does  that  word  'dead'  mean?"  asked  Gaffer 
Tyl. 

"Why,  it  means  that  one's  no  longer  alive!"  said  Tyltyl. 

Grandad  and  Granny  only  shrugged  their  shoulders : 

"How  stupid  the  Living  are,  when  they  speak  of  the 
Others!"  was  all  they  said. 

And  they  went  over  their  memories  again,  rejoicing  in 
being  able  to  chat. 

All  old  people  love  discussing  old  times.  The  future  is 
finished,  as  far  as  they  are  concerned;  and  so  they  delight 
in  the  present  and  the  past.  But  we  are  growing  impatient, 
like  Tyltyl;  and,  instead  of  listening  to  them,  we  will  fol- 
low our  little  friend's  movements. 

He  had  jumped  off  Granny's  knees  and  was  poking  about 
in  every  corner,  delighted  at  finding  all  sorts  of  things 
which  he  knew  and  remembered  : 

"Nothing  is  changed,  everything  is  in  its  old  place!"  he 
cried.  And,  as  he  had  not  been  to  the  old  people's  home 
for  so  long,  everything  struck  him  as  much  nicer;  and  he 
added,  in  the  voice  of  one  who  knows,  "Only  everything 
is  prettier !  .  .  .  Hullo,  there's  the  clock  with  the  big  hand 
which  I  broke  the  point  off  and  the  hole  which  I  made  in 
the  door,  the  day  I  found  Grandad's  gimlet.  .  .  ." 

"Yes,  you've  done  some  damage  in  your  time!"  said 


The  Land  of  Memory  $$ 

Grandad.  "And  there's  the  plum-tree  which  you  were  so 
fond  of  climbing,  when  I  wasn't  looking.  .  .  ." 
Meantime,  Tyltyl  was  not  forgetting  his  errand : 
"You  haven't  the  Blue  Bird  here  by  chance,  I  suppose?" 
At  the  same  moment,  Mytyl,  lifting  her  head,  saw  a  cage : 
"Hullo,  there's  the  old  blackbird!  .  .  .  Does  he  still 
sing?" 

As  she  spoke,  the  blackbird  woke  up  and  be^an  to  sing 
at  the  top  of  his  voice. 

"You  see,"  said  Granny,  "as  soon  as  one  thinks  of 
him  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  was  simply  amazed  at  what  he  saw : 
"But  he's  blue!"  he  shouted.     "Why,  that's  the  bird,  the 
Blue  Bird!   .  .  .  He's  blue,  blue,  blue  as  a  blue  glass  mar- 
ble! .  .  .  Will  you  give  him  to  me?" 

The  grandparents  gladly  consented;  and,  full  of  triumph, 
Tyltyl  went  and  fetched  the  cage  which  he  had  left  by  the 
tree.  He  took  hold  of  the  precious  bird  with  the  greatest 
of  care;  and  it  began  to  hop  about  in  its  new  home. 

"How  pleased  the  Fairy  will  be!"  said  the  boy,  rejoicing 
at  his  conquest.     "And  Light  too !" 

"Come  along,"  said  the  grandparents.     "Come  and  look 
at  the  cow  and  the  bees." 
As  the  old  couple  were  beginning  to  toddle  across  the 


56  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

garden,  the  children  suddenly  asked  if  their  little  dead 
brothers  and  sisters  were  there  too.  At  the  same  moment, 
seven  little  children,  who,  up  to  then,  had  been  sleeping 
in  the  house,  came  tearing  like  mad  into  the  garden.  Tyltyl 
and  Mytyl  ran  up  to  them.  They  all  hustled  and  hugged 
one  another  and  danced  and  whirled  about  and  uttered 
screams  of  joy. 

"Here  they  are,  here  they  are!"  said  Granny.  "As  soon 
as  you  speak  of  them,  they  are  there,  the  imps !" 

Tyltyl  caught  a  little  one  by  the  hair  : 

"Hullo,  Pierrot!  So  we're  going  to  fight  again,  as  in 
the  old  days !  .  .  .  And  Robert !  .  .  .  I  say,  Jean,  what's 
become  of  your  top?  .  .  .  Madeleine  and  Pierrette  and 
Pauline !  .  .  .  And  here's  Riquette !  .  .  ." 

Mytyl  laughed : 

"Riquette's  still  crawling  on  all  fours!" 

Tyltyl  noticed  a  little  dog  yapping  around  them: 

"There's  Kiki,  whose  tail  I  cut  off  with  Pauline's  scis- 
sors. .  .  .  He  hasn't  changed  either.  .  .  ." 

"No,"  said  Gaffer  Tyl,  in  a  voice  of  great  importance, 
"nothing  changes  here !" 

But,  suddenly,  amid  the  general  rejoicings,  the  old  people 
stopped  spell-bound :  they  had  heard  the  small  voice  of  the 
clock  indoors  strike  eight! 


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^he  hand  of  Memory  57 

"How's  this?"  they  asked.  "It  never  strikes  nowa- 
days. .  .  ." 

"That's  because  we  no  longer  think  of  the  time,"  said 
Granny.     "Was  any  one  thinking  of  the  time?" 

"Yes,  I  was,"  said  Tyltyl.  "So  it's  eight  o'clock?  .  .  . 
Then  I'm  off,  for  I  promised  Light  to  be  back  before 
nine.  .  .  ." 

He  was  going  for  the  cage,  but  the  others  were  too  happy 
to  let  him  run  away  so  soon :  it  would  be  horrid  to  say 
good-bye  like  that!  Granny  had  a  good  idea:  she  knew 
what  a  little  glutton  Tyltyl  was.  It  was  just  supper-time 
and,  as  luck  would  have  it,  there  was  some  capital  cabbage- 
soup  and  a  beautiful  plum-tart. 

"Well,"  said  our  hero,  "as  I've  got  the  Blue  Bird!  .  .  . 
And  cabbage-soup  is  a  thing  you  don't  have  every 
day!  .  .  ." 

They  all  hurried  and  carried  the  table  outside  and  laid 
it  with  a  nice  white  table-cloth  and  put  a  plate  for  each; 
and,  lastly,  Granny  brought  out  the  steaming  soup-tureen 
in  state.  The  lamp  was  lit  and  the  grandparents  and 
grandchildren  sat  down  to  supper,  jostling  and  elbowing 
one  another  and  laughing  and  shouting  with  pleasure. 
Then,  for  a  time,  nothing  was  heard  but  the  sound  of  the 
wooden  spoons  noisily  clattering  against  the  soup-plates. 


58  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"How  good  it  is!  Oh,  how  good  it  is!"  shouted  Tyltyl, 
who  was  eating  greedily.  "I  want  some  more!  More! 
More!    More!" 

"Come,  come,  a  little  more  quiet,"  said  Grandad. 
"You're  just  as  ill-behaved  as  ever;  and  you'll  break  your 
plate.  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  took  no  notice  of  the  remark,  stood  up  on  his  stool, 
caught  hold  of  the  tureen  and  dragged  it  towards  him  and 
upset  it;  and  the  hot  soup  trickled  all  over  the  table  and 
down  upon  everybody's  lap.  The  children  yelled  and 
screamed  with  pain.  Granny  was  quite  scared;  and  Gran- 
dad was  furious.  He  dealt  our  friend  Tyltyl  a  tremen- 
dous box  on  the  ear. 

Tyltyl  was  staggered  for  a  moment;  and  then  he  put  his 
hand  to  his  cheek  with  a  look  of  rapture  and  exclaimed : 

"Grandad,  how  good,  how  jolly!  It  was  just  like  the 
slaps  you  used  to  give  me  when  you  were  alive!  ...  I 
must  give  you  a  kiss  for  it!  .  .  ." 

Everybody  laughed. 

"There's  more  where  that  came  from,  if  you  like  them!" 
said  Grandad,  grumpily. 

But  he  was  touched,  all  the  same,  and  turned  to  wipe  a 
tear  from  his  eyes. 

"Goodness!"  cried  Tyltyl,  starting  up.     "There's  half- 


'The  Land  of  Memory  59 

past  eight  striking!  .  .  .  Mytyl,  we've  only  just  got 
time!   ..." 

Granny  in  vain  implored  them  to  stay  a  few  minutes 
longer. 

"No,  we  can't  possibly,"  said  Tyltyl  firmly,  1  promised 
Light!" 

And  he  hurried  to  take  up  the  precious  cage. 

"Good-bye,  Grandad.  .  .  .  Good-bye,  Granny.  .  .  . 
Good-bye,  brothers  and  sisters,  Pierrot,  Robert,  Pauline, 
Madeleine,  Riquette  and  you,  too,  Kiki.  .  .  .  We  can't 
stay.  .  .  .  Don't  cry,  Granny;  we  will  come  back  often!" 

Poor  old  Grandad  was  very  much  upset  and  complained 
lustily : 

"Gracious  me,  how  tiresome  the  Living  are,  with  all  their 
fuss  and  excitement!" 

Tyltyl  tried  to  console  him  and  again  promised  to  come 
back  very  often. 

"Come  back  every  day!"  said  Granny.  "It  is  our  only 
pleasure;  and  it's  such  a  treat  for  us  when  your  thoughts 
pay  us  a  visit!" 

"Good-bye!  Good-bye!"  cried  the  brothers  and  sisters 
in  chorus.  "Come  back  very  soon!  Bring  us  some  barley 
sugar ! 

There  were  more  kisses;  all  waved  their  handkerchiefs; 


6o  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

all  shouted  a  last  good-bye.  But  the  figures  began  to  fade 
away;  the  little  voices  could  no  longer  be  heard;  the  two 
Children  were  once  more  wrapped  in  mist;  and  the  old  forest 
covered  them  with  its  great  dark  mantle. 

"I'm  so  frightened!"  whimpered  Mytyl.  "Give  me  your 
hand,  little  brother!     I'm  so  frightened!" 

Tyltyl  was  shaking  too,  but  it  was  his  duty  to  try  and 
comfort  and  console  his  sister: 

"Hush!"  he  said.  "Remember  that  we  are  bringing  back 
the  Blue  Bird!" 

As  he  spoke,  a  thin  ray  of  light  pierced  the  gloom;  and 
the  little  boy  hurried  towards  it.  He  was  holding  his  cage 
tight  in  his  arms;  and  the  first  thing  he  did  was  to  look 
at  his  bird.  .  .  .  Alas  and  alack,  what  a  disappointment 
awaited  him!  The  beautiful  Blue  Bird  of  the  Land  of 
Memory  had  turned  quite  black!  Stare  at  it  as  hard  as 
Tyltyl  might,  the  bird  was  black!  Oh,  how  well  he  knew 
the  old  blackbird  that  used  to  sing  in  its  wicker  prison,  in 
the  old  days,  at  the  door  of  the  house!  What  had  hap- 
pened? How  painful  it  was!  And  how  cruel  life  seemed 
to  him  just  then! 

He  had  started  on  his  journey  with  such  zest  and  delight 
that  he  had  not  thought  for  a  moment  of  the  difficulties 
and  dangers.     Full  of  confidence,  pluck  and  kindness,  he 


The  Land  of  Memory  6i 

had  marched  off,  certain  of  finding  the  beautiful  Blue  Bird 
which  would  bring  happiness  to  the  Fairy's  little  girl,  And 
now  all  his  hopes  were  shattered!  For  the  first  time,  our 
poor  friend  understood  the  trials,  the  vexations  and  the 
obstacles  that  awaited  him !  Alas,  was  he  attempting  an 
impossible  thing?  Was  the  Fairy  making  fun  of  him? 
Would  he  ever  find  the  Blue  Bird?  All  his  courage  seemed 
to  be  leaving  him.  .  .  . 

To  add  to  his  misfortunes,  he  could  not  find  the  straight 
road  by  which  he  had  come.  There  was  not  a  single  white 
pansy  on  the  ground;  and  he  began  to  cry. 

Luckily,  our  little  friends  were  not  to  remain  in  trouble 
long.  The  Fairy  had  promised  that  Light  would  watch 
over  them.  The  first  trial  was  over;  and,  just  as  outside 
the  old  people's  house  a  little  while  ago,  the  mist  now  sud- 
denly lifted.  But,  instead  of  disclosing  a  peaceful  pic- 
ture, a  gentle,  homely  scene,  it  revealed  a  marvellous 
temple,  with  a  blinding  glare  streaming  from  it. 

On  the  threshold  stood  Light,  fair  and  beautiful  in  her 
diamond-coloured  dress.  She  smiled  when  Tyltyl  told  her 
of  his  first  failure.  She  knew  what  the  little  ones  were 
seeking;  she  knew  everything.  For  Light  surrounds  all 
mortals  with  her  love,  though  none  of  them  is  fond  enough 
of  her  ever  to  receive  her  thoroughly  and  thus  to  learn  all 


62  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

the  secrets  of  Truth.  Now,  for  the  first  time,  thanks  to 
the  diamond  which  the  Fairy  had  given  to  the  boy,  she  was 
going  to  try  and  conquer  a  human  soul : 

"Do  not  be  sad,"  she  said  to  the  Children.  "Are  you  not 
pleased  to  have  seen  your  grandparents'?  Is  that  not 
enough  happiness  for  one  day?  Are  you  not  glad  to  have 
restored  the  old  blackbird  to  life?  Listen  to  him  sing- 
ing! 

For  the  old  blackbird  was  singing  with  might  and  main; 
and  his  little  yellow  eyes  sparkled  with  pleasure  as  he 
hopped  about  his  big  cage. 

"As  you  look  for  the  Blue  Bird,  dear  Children,  accustom 
yourselves  to  love  the  grey  birds  which  you  find  on  your 
way." 

She  nodded  her  fair  head  gravely;  and  it  was  quite  clear 
that  she  knew  where  the  Blue  Bird  was.  But  life  is  often 
full  of  beautiful  mysteries,  which  we  must  respect,  lest  we 
should  destroy  them;  and,  if  Light  had  told  the  Children 
where  the  Blue  Bird  was,  well,  they  would  never  have 
found  him !     I  will  tell  you  why  at  the  end  of  this  story. 

And  now  let  us  leave  our  little  friends  to  sleep  on  beauti- 
ful white  clouds  under  Light's  watchful  care. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE    PALACE   OF   NIGHT 

Some  time  after,  the  Children  and  their  friends  met  at  the 
first  dawn  to  go  to  the  Palace  of  Night,  where  they  hoped 
to  find  the  Blue  Bird.  Several  of  the  party  failed  to  an- 
swer to  their  names  when  the  roll  was  called.  Milk,  for 
whom  any  sort  of  excitement  was  bad,  was  keeping  her 
room.  Water  sent  an  excuse:  she  was  accustomed  always 
to  travel  in  a  bed  of  moss,  was  already  half-dead  with  fa- 
tigue and  was  afraid  of  falling  ill.  As  for  Light,  she  had 
been  on  bad  terms  with  Night  since  the  world  began;  and 
Fire,  as  a  relation,  shared  her  dislike.  Light  kissed  the 
Children  and  told  Tylo  the  way,  for  it  was  his  business  to 
lead  the  expedition;  and  the  little  band  set  out  upon  its 
road. 

You  can  imagine  dear  T5/I6  trotting  ahead,  on  his  hind- 
legs,  like  a  little  man,  with  his  nose  in  the  air,  his  tongue 
dangling  down  his  chin,  his  front  paws  folded  across  his 
chest.  He  fidgets,  sniffs  about,  runs  up  and  down,  covering 
twice  the  ground  without  minding  how  tired  it  makes  him. 

65 


66  'The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

He  is  so  full  of  his  own  importance  that  he  disdains  the 
temptations  on  his  path :  he  neglects  the  rubbish-heaps,  pays 
no  attention  to  anything  he  sees  and  cuts  all  his  old  friends. 

Poor  Tylo!  He  was  so  delighted  to  become  a  man;  and 
yet  he  was  no  happier  than  before !  Of  course,  life  was  the 
same  to  him,  because  his  nature  had  remained  unchanged. 
What  was  the  use  of  his  being  a  man,  if  he  continued  to 
feel  and  think  like  a  dog4?  In  fact,  his  troubles  were  in- 
creased a  hundred-fold  by  the  sense  of  responsibility  that 
now  weighed  upon  him. 

"Ah!"  he  said,  with  a  sigh,  for  he  was  joining  blindly  in 
his  little  gods'  search,  without  for  a  moment  reflecting  that 
the  end  of  the  journey  would  mean  the  end  of  his  life. 
"Ah,"  he  said,  "if  I  got  hold  of  that  rascal  of  a  Blue  Bird, 
trust  me,  I  wouldn't  touch  him  even  with  the  tip  of  my 
tongue,  not  if  he  were  as  plump  and  sweet  as  a  quail!" 

Bread  followed  solemnly,  carrying  the  cage;  the  two 
Children  came  next;  and  Sugar  brought  up  the  rear. 

But  where  was  the  Cat4?  To  discover  the  reason  of  her 
absence,  we  must  go  a  little  way  back  and  read  her  thoughts. 
At  the  time  when  Tylette  called  a  meeting  of  the  Animals 
and  Things  in  the  Fairy's  hall,  she  was  contemplating  a 
great  plot  which  would  aim  at  prolonging  the  journey; 
but  she  had  reckoned  without  the  stupidity  of  her  hearers: 


u 


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The  Palace  of  Night  67 

"The  idiots,"  she  thought,  "have  very  nearly  spoiled  the 
whole  thing  by  foolishly  throwing  themselves  at  the  Fairy's 
feet,  as  though  they  were  guilty  of  a  crime.  It  is  better  to 
rely  upon  one's  self  alone.  In  my  cat-life,  all  our  training 
is  founded  on  suspicion;  I  can  see  that  it  is  just  the  same 
in  the  life  of  men.  Those  who  confide  in  others  are  only 
betrayed;  it  is  better  to  keep  silent  and  to  be  treacherous 
one's  self." 

As  you  see,  my  dear  little  readers,  the  Cat  was  in  the 
same  position  as  the  Dog:  she  had  not  changed  her  soul  and 
was  simply  continuing  her  former  existence ;  but,  of  course, 
she  was  very  wicked,  whereas  our  dear  Tylo  was,  if  any- 
thing, too  good.  Tylette,  therefore,  resolved  to  act  on  her 
own  account  and  went,  before  daybreak,  to  call  on  Night, 
who  was  an  old  friend  of  hers. 

The  road  to  the  Palace  of  Night  was  rather  long  and 
rather  dangerous.  It  had  precipices  on  either  side  of  it; 
you  had  to  climb  up  and  climb  down  and  then  climb  up 
again  among  high  rocks  that  always  seemed  waiting  to 
crush  the  passers-by.  At  last,  you  came  to  the  edge  of  a 
dark  circle;  and  there  you  had  to  go  down  thousands  of 
steps  to  reach  the  black-marble  underground  palace  in  which 
Night  lived. 

The  Cat,  who  had  often  been  there  before,  raced  along 


68  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

the  road,  light  as  a  feather.  Her  cloak,  borne  on  the  wind, 
streamed  like  a  banner  behind  her;  the  plume  in  her  hat 
fluttered  gracefully;  and  her  little  grey  kid  boots  hardly 
touched  the  ground.  She  soon  reached  her  destination  and, 
in  a  few  bounds,  came  to  the  great  hall  where  Night  was. 

It  was  really  a  wonderful  sight.  Night,  stately  and 
grand  as  a  Queen,  reclined  upon  her  throne;  she  slept;  and 
not  a  glimmer,  not  a  star  twinkled  around  her.  But  we 
know  that  the  night  has  no  secrets  for  cats  and  that  their 
eyes  have  the  power  of  piercing  the  darkness.  So  Tylette 
saw  Night  as  though  it  were  broad  daylight. 

Before  waking  her,  she  cast  a  loving  glance  at  that  moth- 
erly and  familiar  face.  It  was  white  and  silvery  as  the 
moon;  and  its  unbending  features  inspired  both  fear  and  ad- 
miration. Night's  figure,  which  was  half  visible  through  her 
long  black  veils,  was  as  beautiful  as  that  of  a  Greek  statue. 
She  had  long  arms  and  a  pair  of  enormous  wings,  now  furled 
in  sleep,  came  from  her  shoulders  to  her  feet  and  gave  her 
a  look  of  majesty  beyond  compare.  Still,  in  spite  of  her 
affection  for  her  best  of  friends,  Tylette  did  not  waste  too 
much  time  in  gazing  at  her:  it  was  a  critical  moment;  and 
time  was  short.  Tired  and  jaded  and  overcome  with 
anguish,  she  sank  upon  the  steps  of  the  throne  and  mewed, 
plaintively: 


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Night  sat  up,  all  quivering.     Her  immense  wings  beat  around  her; 
and  she  questioned  Tylette  in  a  trembling  voice 


The  Palace  of  Night  69 

"It  is  I,  Mother  Night!  .  .  .  I  am  worn  out!" 
Night  is  of  an  anxious  nature  and  easily  alarmed.  Her 
beauty,  built  up  of  peace  and  repose,  possesses  the  secret  of 
Silence,  which  life  is  constantly  disturbing :  a  star  shooting 
through  the  sky,  a  leaf  falling  to  the  ground,  the  hoot  of  an 
owl,  a  mere  nothing  is  enough  to  tear  the  black  velvet  pall 
which  she  spreads  over  the  earth  each  evening.  The  Cat, 
therefore,  had  not  finished  speaking,  when  Night  sat  up, 
all  quivering.  Her  immense  wings  beat  around  her;  and 
she  questioned  Tylette  in  a  trembling  voice.  As  soon  as 
she  had  learned  the  danger  that  threatened  her,  she  began 
to  lament  her  fate.  What !  A  man's  son  coming  to  her  pal- 
ace! And,  perhaps,  with  the  help  of  the  magic  diamond, 
discovering  her  secrets!  What  should  she  do?  What 
would  become  of  her?  How  could  she  defend  herself? 
And,  forgetting  that  she  was  sinning  against  Silence,  her 
own  particular  god,  Night  began  to  utter  piercing  screams. 
It  was  true  that  falling  into  such  a  commotion  was  hardly 
likely  to  help  her  find  a  cure  for  her  troubles.  Luckily  for 
her,  Tylette,  who  was  accustomed  to  the  annoyances  and 
worries  of  human  life,  was  better  armed.  She  had  worked 
out  her  plan  when  going  ahead  of  the  children ;  and  she  was 
hoping  to  persuade  Night  to  adopt  it.  She  explained  this 
plan  to  her  in  a  few  words : 


70  The  Children 's  Blue  Bird 

"I  see  only  one  thing  for  it,  Mother  Night:  as  they  are 
children,  we  must  give  them  such  a  fright  that  they  will  not 
dare  to  insist  on  opening  the  great  door  at  the  back  of  the 
hall,  behind  which  the  Birds  of  the  Moon  live  and  generally 
the  Blue  Bird  too.  The  secrets  of  the  other  caverns  will 
be  sure  to  scare  them.  The  hope  of  our  safety  lies  in  the 
terror  which  you  will  make  them  feel." 

There  was  clearly  no  other  course  to  take.  But  Night  had 
not  time  to  reply,  for  she  heard  a  sound.  Then  her  beauti- 
ful features  contracted;  her  wings  spread  out  angrily;  and 
everything  in  her  attitude  told  Tylette  that  Night  approved 
of  her  plan. 

"Here  they  are!"  cried  the  Cat. 

The  little  band  came  marching  down  the  steps  of  Night's 
gloomy  staircase.  Tylo  pranced  bravely  in  front,  whereas 
Tyltyl  looked  around  him  with  an  anxious  glance.  He 
certainly  found  nothing  to  comfort  him.  It  was  all  very 
magnificent,  but  very  terrifying.  Picture  a  huge  and  won- 
derful black  marble  hall,  of  a  stern  and  tomb-like  splendour. 
There  is  no  ceiling  visible;  and  the  ebony  pillars  that  sur- 
round the  amphitheatre  shoot  up  to  the  sky.  It  is  only  when 
you  lift  your  eyes  up  there  that  you  catch  the  faint  light  fall- 
ing from  the  stars.  Everywhere,  the  thickest  darkness 
reigns.    Two  restless  flames — no  more — flicker  on  either 


The  Palace  of  Night  7] 

side  of  Night's  throne,  before  a  monumental  door  of  brass. 
Bronze  doors  show  through  the  pillars  to  the  right  and 
left. 

The  Cat  rushed  up  to  the  Children : 

"This  way,  little  master,  this  way!  ...  I  have  told 
Night;  and  she  is  delighted  to  see  you." 

T\lette's  soft  voice  and  smile  made  Tyltyl  feel  himself 
again ;  and  he  walked  up  to  the  throne  with  a  bold  and  con- 
fident step,  saying: 

"Good-day,  Mrs.  Night!" 

Night  was  offended  by  the  word,  "Good-day,"  which  re-( 
minded  her  of  her  eternal  enemy  Light,  and  answered  drily : 

"Good-day4?  ...  I  am  not  used  to  that!  .  .  .  You 
might  say,  Good-night,  or,  at  least,  Good-evening!" 

Our  hero  was  not  prepared  to  quarrel.  He  felt  very  small 
in  the  presence  of  that  stately  lady.  He  quickly  begged 
her  pardon,  as  nicely  as  he  could;  and  very  gently  asked 
her  leave  to  look  for  the  Blue  Bird  in  her  palace. 

"I  have  never  seen  him,  he  is  not  here !"  exclaimed  Night, 
flapping  her  great  wings  to  frighten  the  boy.  " 

But,  when  he  insisted  and  gave  no  sign  of  fear,  she  herself 
began*  to  dread  the  diamond,  which,  by  lighting  up  her 
darkness,  would  completely  destroy  her  power;  and  she 
thought  it  better  to  pretend  to  yield  to  an  impulse  of  gen- 


72  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

erosity  and  at  once  to  point  to  the  big  key  that  lay  on  the 
steps  of  the  throne. 

Without  a  moment's  hesitation,  Tyltyl  seized  hold  of  it 
and  ran  to  the  first  door  of  the  hall. 

Everybody  shook  with  fright.  Bread's  teeth  chattered 
in  his  head;  Sugar,  who  was  standing  some  way  off,  moaned 
with  mortal  anguish;  Mytyl  howled : 

"Where  is  Sugar?  ...  I  want  to  go  home!'* 

Meanwhile,  Tyltyl,  pale  and  resolute,  was  trying  to 
open  the  door,  while  Night's  grave  voice,  rising  above  the 
din,  proclaimed  the  first  danger. 

"It's  the  Ghosts!" 

"Oh,  dear !"  thought  Tyltyl.  "I  have  never  seen  a  ghost : 
it  must  be  awful!" 

The  faithful  Tylo,  by  his  side,  was  panting  with  all  his 
might,  for  dogs  hate  anything  uncanny. 

At  last,  the  key  grated  in  the  lock.  Silence  reigned  as 
dense  and  heavy  as  the  darkness.  No  one  dared  draw  a 
breath.  Then  the  door  opened;  and,  in  a  moment,  the 
gloom  was  filled  with  white  figures  running  in  every  direc- 
tion. Some  lengthened  out  right  up  to  the  sky;  others 
twined  themselves  round  the  pillars;  others  wriggled  ever 
so  fast  along  the  ground.  They  were  something  like  men, 
but  it  was  impossible  to  distinguish  their  features;  the  eye 


The  Palace  of  Night  73 

could  not  catch  them.  The  moment  you  looked  at  them, 
they  turned  into  a  white  mist.  Tyltyl  did  his  best  to  chase 
them;  for  Mrs.  Night  kept  to  the  plan  contrived  by  the  Cat 
and  pretended  to  be  frightened.  She  had  been  the  Ghosts' 
friend  for  hundreds  and  hundreds  of  years  and  had  only 
to  say  a  word  to  drive  them  in  again;  but  she  was  careful 
to  do  nothing  of  the  sort  and,  flapping  her  wings  like  mad, 
she  called  upon  all  her  gods  and  screamed : 

"Drive  them  away !     Drive  them  away !    Help !    Help !" 

But  the  poor  Ghosts,  who  hardly  ever  come  out  now  that 
Man  no  longer  believes  in  them,  were  much  too  happy  at 
taking  a  breath  of  air;  and,  had  it  not  been  that  they  were 
afraid  of  Tylo,  who  tried  to  bite  their  legs,  they  would  never 
have  been  put  back  indoors. 

"Oof!"  gasped  the  Dog,  when  the  door  was  shut  at  last. 
"I  have  strong  teeth,  goodness  knows;  but  chaps  like  those 
I  never  saw  before !  When  you  bite  them,  you'd  think  their 
legs  were  made  of  cotton !" 

By  this  time,  Tyltyl  was  making  for  the  second  door  and 
asking  : 

"What's  behind  this  one?" 

Night  made  a  gesture  as  though  to  put  him  off.  Did  the 
obstinate  little  fellow  really  want  to  see  everything? 

"Must  I  be  careful  when  I  open  it?"  asked  Tyltyl. 


74  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"No,"  said  Night,  "it  is  not  worth  while.  It's  the  Sick- 
nesses. They  are  very  quiet,  the  poor  little  things !  Man, 
for  some  time,  has  been  waging  such  war  upon  them !  .  .  . 
Open  and  see  for  yourself.  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  threw  the  door  wide  open  and  stood  speechless 
with  astonishment :  there  was  nothing  to  be  seen.  .  .  . 

He  was  just  about  to  close  the  door  again,  when  he  was 
hustled  aside  by  a  little  body  in  a  dressing-gown  and  a 
cotton  night-cap,  who  began  to  frisk  about  the  hall,  wagging 
her  head  and  stopping  every  minute  to  cough,  sneeze  and 
blow  her  nose  .  .  .  and  to  pull  on  her  slippers,  which  were 
too  big  for  her  and  kept  dropping  off  her  feet.  Sugar, 
Bread  and  Tyltyl  were  no  longer  frightened  and  began  to 
laugh  like  anything.  But  they  had  no  sooner  come  near  the 
little  person  in  the  cotton  night-cap  than  they  themselves 
began  to  cough  and  sneeze. 

"It's  the  least  important  of  the  Sicknesses,"  said  Night. 
"It's  Cold-in-the-Head." 

"Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear!"  thought  Sugar.  "If  my  nose  keeps 
on  running  like  this,  I'm  done  for:  I  shall  melt!" 

Poor  Sugar!  He  did  not  know  where  to  hide  himself. 
He  had  become  very  much  attached  to  life  since  the  jour- 
ney began,  for  he  had  fallen  over  head  and  ears  in  love  with 
Water !     And  yet  this  love  caused  him  the  greatest  worry. 


ti 


Wagging  her  head  and  stopping  every  minute  to  cough, 
sneeze  and  blow  her  nose 


The  Palace  of  Night  75 

Miss  Water  was  a  tremendous  flirt,  expected  a  lot  of  atten- 
tion and  was  not  particular  with  whom  she  mixed;  but  mix- 
ing too  much  with  Water  was  an  expensive  luxury,  as  poor 
Sugar  found  to  his  cost;  for,  at  every  kiss  he  gave  her,  he  left 
a  bit  of  himself  behind,  until  he  began  to  tremble  for  his  life. 

When  he  suddenly  found  himself  attacked  by  Cold-in- 
the-Head,  he  would  have  had  to  fly  from  the  palace,  but  for 
the  timely  aid  of  our  dear  Tylo,  who  ran  after  the  little 
minx  and  drove  her  back  to  her  cavern,  amidst  the  laughter 
of  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl,  who  thought  gleefully  that,  so  far, 
the  trial  had  not  been  very  terrible. 

The  boy,  therefore,  ran  to  the  next  door  with  still  greater 
courage. 

"Take  care!"  cried  Night,  in  a  dreadful  voice.  "It's  the 
Wars!  They  are  more  powerful  than  ever!  I  daren't 
think  what  would  happen,  if  one  of  them  broke  loose! 
Stand  ready,  all  of  you,  to  push  back  the  door !" 

Night  had  not  finished  uttering  her  warnings,  when  the 
plucky  little  fellow  repented  his  rashness.  He  tried  in 
vain  to  shut  the  door  which  he  had  opened:  an  in- 
vincible force  was  pushing  it  from  the  other  side,  streams  of 
blood  flowed  through  the  cracks;  flames  shot  forth;  shouts, 
oaths  and  groans  mingled  with  the  roar  of  cannon  and  the 
rattle  of  musketry.    Everybody  in  the  Palace  of  Night  was 


76  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

running  about  in  wild  confusion.  Bread  and  Sugar  tried 
to  take  to  flight,  but  could  not  find  the  way  out;  and  they 
now  came  back  to  Tyltyl  and  put  their  shoulders  to  the  door 
with  despairing  force. 

The  Cat  pretended  to  be  anxious,  while  secretly  rejoic- 
ing: 

"This  may  be  the  end  of  it,"  she  said,  curling  her  whiskers. 
"They  won't  dare  to  go  on  after  this." 

Dear  Tylo  made  superhuman  efforts  to  help  his  little  mas- 
ter, while  Mytyl  stood  crying  in  a  corner. 

At  last,  our  hero  gave  a  shout  of  triumph : 

"Hurrah!  They're  giving  way!  Victory!  Victory! 
The  door  is  shut!" 

At  the  same  time,  he  dropped  on  the  steps,  utterly  ex- 
hausted, dabbing  his  forehead  with  his  poor  little  hands 
which  shook  with  terror. 

"Well?"  asked  Night,  harshly.  "Have  you  had  enough1? 
Did  you  see  them?" 

"Yes,  yes!"  replied  the  little  fellow,  sobbing.  "They 
are  hideous  and  awful.  ...  I  don't  think  they  have  the 
Blue  Bird."  .  .  . 

:'You  may  be  sure  they  haven't,"  answered  Night,  an- 
grily. "If  they  had,  they  would  eat  him  at  once.  .  .  .  You 
see  there  is  nothing  to  be  done.   .   .   ." 


The  Palace  of  Night  "jl 

Tyltyl  drew  himself  up  proudly  : 

"I  must  see  everything,"  he  declared.  "Light  said 
so.  .  .  ." 

"It's  an  easy  thing  to  say,"  retorted  Night,  "when  one's 
afraid  and  stays  at  home !" 

"Let  us  go  to  the  next  door,"  said  Tyltyl,  resolutely. 
"What's  in  here  T 

"This  is  where  I  keep  the  Shades  and  the  Terrors !" 

Tyltyl  reflected  for  a  minute : 

"As  far  as  Shades  go,"  he  thought,  "Mrs.  Night  is  poking 
fun  at  me.  It's  more  than  an  hour  since  I've  seen  anything 
but  shade  in  this  house  of  hers ;  and  I  shall  be  very  glad  to 
see  daylight  again.  As  for  the  Terrors,  if  they  are  anything 
like  the  Ghosts,  we  shall  have  another  good  joke." 

Our  friend  went  to  the  door  and  opened  it,  before  his  com- 
panions had  time  to  protest.  For  that  matter,  they  were  all 
sitting  on  the  floor,  exhausted  with  the  last  fright;  and  they 
looked  at  one  another  in  astonishment,  glad  to  find  them- 
selves alive  after  such  a  scare.  Meanwhile,  Tyltyl  threw 
back  the  door  and  nothing  came  out : 

"There's  no  one  there !"  he  said. 

"Yes,  there  is!  Yes,  there  is!  Look  out!"  said  Night, 
who  was  still  shamming  fright. 

She  was  simply  furious.     She  had  hoped  to  make  a  great 


78  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

impression  with  her  Terrors;  and,  lo  and  behold,  the 
wretches,  who  had  so  long  been  snubbed  by  Man,  were 
afraid  of  him!  She  encouraged  them  with  kind  words 
and  succeeded  in  coaxing  out  a  few  tall  figures  covered  with 
grey  veils.  They  began  to  run  all  around  the  hall  until, 
hearing  the  Children  laugh,  they  were  seized  with  fear  and 
rushed  indoors  again.  The  attempt  had  failed,  as  far  as 
Night  was  concerned,  and  the  dread  hour  was  about  to 
strike.  Already,  Tyltyl  was  moving  towards  the  big  door 
at  the  end  of  the  hall.  A  few  last  words  took  place  between 
them: 

"Do  not  open  that  one!"  said  Night,  in  awe-struck  tones. 

"Why  not?" 

"Because  it's  not  allowed!" 

"Then  it's  here  that  the  Blue  Bird  is  hidden!" 

"Go  no  farther,  do  not  tempt  fate,  do  not  open  that  door!" 

"But  why?"  again  asked  Tyltyl,  obstinately. 

Thereupon,  Night,  irritated  by  his  persistency,  flew  into 
a  rage,  hurled  the  most  terrible  threats  at  him,  and  ended  by 
saying : 

"Not  one  of  those  who  have  opened  it,  were  it  but  by  a 
hair's  breadth,  has  ever  returned  alive  to  the  light  of  day! 
It  means  certain  death ;  and  all  the  horrors,  all  the  terrors, 
all  the  fears  of  which  men  speak  on  earth  are  as  nothing  com- 


The  Palace  of  Night  79 

pared  with  those  which  await  you  if  you  insist  on  touching 
that  door!" 

"Don't  do  it,  master  dear!"  said  Bread,  with  chattering 
teeth.  "Don't  do  it!  Take  pity  on  us !  I  implore  you  on 
my  knees !" 

"You  are  sacrificing  the  lives  of  all  of  us,"  mewed  the  Cat. 

"I  won't!     I  sha'n't!"  sobbed  Mytyl. 

"Pity !     Pity !"  whined  Sugar,  wringing  his  fingers. 

All  of  them  were  weeping  and  crying,  all  of  them  crowded 
round  Tyltyl.  Dear  Tylo  alone,  who  respected  his  little 
master's  wishes,  dared  not  speak  a  word,  though  he  fully  be- 
lieved that  his  last  hour  had  come.  Two  big  tears  rolled 
down  his  cheeks;  and  he  licked  Tyltyl's  hands  in  despair. 
It  was  really  a  most  touching  scene ;  and  for  a  moment,  our 
hero  hesitated.  His  heart  beat  wildly,  his  throat  was 
parched  with  anguish,  he  tried  to  speak  and  could  not  get 
out  a  sound :  besides,  he  did  not  wish  to  show  weakness  in 
the  presence  of  his  hapless  companions ! 

"If  I  have  not  the  strength  to  fulfil  my  task,"  he  said  to 
himself,  "who  will  fulfil  it*?  If  my  friends  behold  my  dis- 
tress, it  is  all  up  with  me :  they  will  not  let  me  go  through 
with  my  mission  and  I  shall  never  find  the  Blue  Bird !" 

At  this  thought,  the  boy's  heart  leaped  within  his  breast 
and  all  his  generous  nature  rose  in  rebellion.   It  would  never 


80  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

do  to  be,  perhaps,  within  arm's  length  of  happiness  and  not 
to  try  for  it,  at  the  risk  of  dying  in  the  attempt,  to  try  for  it 
and  hand  it  over  at  last  to  all  mankind ! 

That  settled  it!  Tyltyl  resolved  to  sacrifice  himself. 
Like  a  true  hero,  he  brandished  the  heavy  golden  key  and 
cried : 

"I  must  open  the  door!" 

He  ran  up  to  the  great  door,  with  Tylo  panting  by  his 
side.  The  poor  Dog  was  half-dead  with  fright,  but  his 
pride  and  his  devotion  to  Tyltyl  obliged  him  to  smother  his 
fears : 

"I  shall  stay,"  he  said  to  his  master,  "I'm  not  afraid !  I 
shall  stay  with  my  little  god!" 

In  the  meantime,  all  the  others  had  fled.  Bread  was 
crumbling  to  bits  behind  a  pillar;  Sugar  was  melting  in  a 
corner  with  Mytyl  in  his  arms;  Night  and  the  Cat,  both 
shaking  with  fury,  kept  to  the  far  end  of  the  hall. 

Then  Tyltyl  gave  Tylo  a  last  kiss,  pressed  him  to  his  heart 
and,  with  never  a  tremble,  put  the  key  in  the  lock.  Yells  of 
terror  came  from  all  the  corners  of  the  hall,  where  the  run- 
aways had  taken  shelter,  while  the  two  leaves  of  the  great 
door  opened  by  magic  in  front  of  our  little  friend,  who  was 
struck  dumb  with  admiration  and  delight.  What  an.  ex- 
quisite surprise!     A  wonderful  garden  lay  before  him,  a 


A  wonderful  garden  lay  before  him,  a  dream-garden  filled 
with  flowers  that  shone  like  stars 


The  Palace  of  Night  81 

dream-garden  filled  with  flowers  that  shone  like  stars,  wa- 
terfalls that  came  rushing  from  the  sky  and  trees  which  the 
moon  had  clothed  in  silver.  And  then  there  was  some- 
thing whirling  like  a  blue  cloud  among  the  clusters  of 
roses.  Tyltyl  rubbed  his  eyes;  he  could  not  believe  his 
senses.  He  waited,  looked  again  and  then  dashed  into 
the  garden,  shouting  like  mad: 

"Come  quickly!  .  .  .  Come  quickly!  .  .  .  They  are 
here!  .  .  .  We  have  them  at  last!  .  .  .  Millions  of  blue 
birds!  .  .  .  Thousands  of  millions!  .  .  .  Come,  Mytyl! 
.  .  .  Come,  Tylo !  .  .  .  Come,  all !  .  .  .  Help  me !  .  .  . 
You  can  catch  them  by  handfuls!  .  .  ." 

Reassured  at  last,  his  friends  came  running  up  and  all 
darted  in  among  the  birds,  seeing  who  could  catch  the 
most  : 

"I've  caught  seven  already!"  cried  Mytyl.  "I  can't 
hold  them!" 

"Nor  can  I!"  said  Tyltyl.  "I  have  too  many  of  them! 
.  .  .  They're  escaping  from  my  arms!  „  .  .  Tylo  has 
some  too!  .  .  .  Let  us  go  out,  let  us  go!  .  .  .  Light  is 
waiting  for  us!  .  .  .  How  pleased  she  will  be!  .  .  . 
This  way,  this  way!  .  .  ." 

And  they  all  danced  and  scampered  away  in  their  glee, 
singing  songs  of  triumph  as  they  went. 


82  The  Children 's  Blue  Bird 

Night  and  the  Cat,  who  had  not  shared  in  the  general 
rejoicing,  crept  back  anxiously  to  the  great  door;  and 
Night  whimpered  : 

"Haven't  they  got  him?  .   .   ." 

"No,"  said  the  Cat,  who  saw  the  real  Blue  Bird  perched 
high  up  on  a  moonbeam.  .  .  .  "They  could  not  reach  him, 
he  kept  too  high.  .  .  ." 

Our  friends  in  all  haste  ran  up  the  numberless  stairs  be- 
tween them  and  the  daylight.  Each  of  them  hugged  the 
birds  which  he  had  captured,  never  dreaming  that  every  step 
which  brought  them  nearer  to  the  light  was  fatal  to  the  poor 
things,  so  that,  by  the  time  they  came  to  the  top  of  the 
staircase,  they  were  carrying  nothing  but  dead  birds. 

Light  was  waiting  for  them  anxiously: 

"Well,  have  you  caught  him?"  she  asked. 

"Yes,  yes!"  said  Tyltyl.  "Lots  of  them!  There  are 
thousands!     Look!" 

As  he  spoke,  he  held  out  the  dear  birds  to  her  and  saw, 
to  his  dismay,  that  they  were  nothing  more  than  lifeless 
corpses :  their  poor  little  wings  were  broken  and  their  heads 
drooped  sadly  from  their  necks !  The  boy,  in  his  despair, 
turned  to  his  companions.  Alas,  they  too  were  hugging 
nothing  but  dead  birds! 


"The  Palace  of  Night  83 

Then  Tyltyl  threw  himself  sobbing  into  Light's  arms. 
Once  more,  all  his  hopes  were  dashed  to  the  ground. 

"Do  not  cry,  my  child,"  said  Light.  "You  did  not  catch 
the  one  that  is  able  to  live  in  broad  daylight.  ...  we 
shall  find  him  yet.  .  .  ." 

"Of  course,  we  shall  find  him,"  said  Bread  and  Sugar, 
with  one  voice. 

They  were  great  boobies,  both  of  them;  but  they  wanted 
to  console  the  boy.  As  for  friend  Tylo,  he  was  so  much 
put  out  that  he  forgot  his  dignity  for  a  moment  and,  look- 
ing at  the  dead  birds,  exclaimed  : 

"Are  they  good  to  eat,  I  wonder?" 

The  party  set  out  to  walk  back  and  sleep  in  the  Temple 
of  Light.  It  was  a  melancholy  journey;  ail  regretted  the 
peace  of  home  and  felt  inclined  to  blame  Tyltyl  for  his 
want  of  caution.  Sugar  edged  up  to  Bread  and  whispered 
in  his  ear: 

"Don't  you  think,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  all  this  excitement 
is  very  useless?" 

And  Bread,  who  felt  flattered  at  receiving  so  much  atten- 
tion, answered,  pompously: 

"Never  you  fear,  my  dear  fellow,  I  shall  put  all  this  right. 
Life  would  be  unbearable  if  we  had  to  listen  to  all  the 


84  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

whimsies  of  that  little  madcap !  .  .  .  To-morrow,  we  shall 
stay  in  bed!   .  .  ." 

They  forgot  that,  but  for  the  boy  at  whom  they  were 
sneering,  they  would  never  have  been  alive  at  all;  and  that, 
if  he  had  suddenly  told  Bread  that  he  must  go  back  to  his 
pan  to  be  eaten  and  Sugar  that  he  was  to  be  cut  into  small 
lumps  to  sweeten  Daddy  "Tyl's  coffee  and  Mummy  Tyl's 
syrups,  they  would  have  thrown  themselves  at  their  bene- 
factor's feet  and  begged  for  mercy.  In  fact,  they  were  in- 
capable of  appreciating  their  good  luck  until  they  were 
brought  face  to  face  with  bad. 

Poor  things !  The  Fairy  Berylune,  when  making  them  a 
present  of  their  human  life,  ought  to  have  thrown  in  a 
little  wisdom.  They  were  not  so  much  to  blame.  Of 
course,  they  were  only  following  Man's  example.  Given 
the  power  of  speaking,  they  jabbered;  knowing  how  to 
judge,  they  condemned;  able  to  feel,  they  complained. 
They  had  hearts  which  increased  their  sense  of  fear,  with- 
out adding  to  their  happiness.  As  to  their  brains,  which 
could  easily  have  arranged  all  the  rest,  they  made  so  little 
of  them  that  they  had  already  grown  quite  rusty;  and,  if 
you  could  have  opened  their  heads  and  looked  at  the  works 
of  their  life  inside,  you  would  have  seen  the  poor  brains, 
which  were  their  most  precious  possession,  jumping  about 


The  Palace  of  Night  85 

at  every  movement  they  made  and  rattling  in  their  empty 
skulls  like  dry  peas  in  a  pod. 

Fortunately,  Light,  thanks  to  her  wonderful  insight, 
knew  all  about  their  state  of  mind.  She  determined,  there- 
fore, to  employ  the  Elements  and  Things  no  more  than 
she  was  obliged  to: 

"They  are  useful,"  she  thought,  "to  feed  the  children 
and  amuse  them  on  the  way;  but  they  must  have  no  further 
share  in  the  trials,  because  they  have  neither  courage  nor 
conviction." 

Meanwhile,  the  party  walked  on,  the  road  widened  out 
and  became  resplendent;  and,  at  the  end,  the  Temple  of 
Light  stood  on  a  crystal  height,  shedding  its  beams  around. 
The  tired  Children  made  the  Dog  carry  them  pick-a-back 
by  turns;  and  they  were  almost  asleep  when  they  reached 
the  shining  steps. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  KINGDOM   OF  THE  FUTURE 

Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  woke  up  next  morning,  feeling  very 
gay;  with  childish  carelessness,  they  had  forgotten  their  dis- 
appointment. Tyltyl  was  very  proud  of  the  compliments 
which  Light  had  paid  him :  she  seemed  as  happy  as  though 
he  had  brought  the  Blue  Bird  with  him : 
She  said,  with  a  smile,  as  she  stroked  the  lad's  dark  curls : 
"I  am  quite  satisfied.  You  are  such  a  good,  brave  boy 
that  you  will  soon  find  what  you  are  looking  for." 

Tyltyl  did  not  understand  the  deep  meaning  of  her 
words;  but,  for  all  that,  he  was  very  glad  to  hear  them. 
And,  besides,  Light  had  promised  him  that  to-day  he  would 
have  nothing  to  fear  in  their  new  expedition.  On  the 
contrary,  he  would  meet  millions  and  millions  of  lit- 
tle children  who  would  show  him  the  most  wonderful  toys 
of  which  no  one  on  earth  had  the  least  idea.  She  also  told 
him  that  he  and  his  little  sister  would  travel  alone  with  her 
this  time  and  that  all  the  others  would  take  a  rest  while  they 
were  gone. 

89 


C)0  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

That  is  why,  at  the  moment  when  our  chapter  opens,  they 
had  all  met  in  the  underground  vaults  of  the  temple. 
Light  thought  it  as  well  to  lock  up  the  Elements  and 
Things.  She  knew  that,  if  they  were  left  to  do  as  they 
pleased,  they  might  escape  and  get  into  mischief.  It  was 
not  so  very  cruel  of  her,  because  the  vaults  of  her  temple 
are  even  lighter  and  lovelier  than  the  upper  floors  of  human 
houses;  but  you  cannot  get  out  without  her  leave.  She 
alone  has  the  power  of  widening,  with  a  stroke  of  her 
wand,  a  little  cleft  in  an  emerald  wall  at  the  end  of  the 
passage,  through  which  you  go  down  a  few  crystal  steps 
till  you  come  to  a  sort  of  cave,  all  green  and  transparent 
like  a  forest  when  the  sunlight  sweeps  through  its 
branches. 

Usually,  this  great  hall  was  quite  empty;  but  now  it  had 
sofas  in  it  and  a  gold  table  laid  with  fruits  and  cakes  and 
creams  and  delicious  wines,  which  Light's  servants  had  just 
finished  setting  out.  Light's  servants  were  very  odd! 
They  always  made  the  Children  laugh:  with  their  long 
white  satin  dresses  and  their  little  black  caps  with  a  flame 
at  the  top,  they  looked  like  lighted  candles.  Their  mistress 
sent  them  away  and  then  told  the  Animals  and  Things 
to  be  very  good  and  asked  them  if  they  would  like  some 
books  and  games  to  play  with;  they  answered,  with  a  laugh, 


Light's  servants  were  very  odd 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  91 

that  nothing  amused  them  more  than  eating  and  sleeping 
and  that  they  were  very  glad  to  stay  where. they  were. 

Tylo,  of  course,  did  not  share  this  view.  His  heart  spoke 
louder  than  his  greed  or  his  laziness;  and  his  great  dark 
eyes  turned  in  entreaty  on  Tyltyl,  who  would  have  been 
only  too  pleased  to  take  his  faithful  companion  with  him, 
if  Light  had  not  absolutely  forbidden  it : 

"I  can't  help  it,"  said  the  boy,  giving  him  a  kiss.  "It 
seems  that  dogs  are  not  admitted  where  we  are  going." 

Suddenly,  Tylo  sprang  up  with  delight :  a  great  idea  had 
struck  him.  He  had  not  left  his  real,  doggy  life  long 
enough  to  forget  any  part  of  it,  especially  his  troubles. 
Which  was  the  greatest  of  these?  Was  it  not  the  chain? 
What  melancholy  hours  Tylo  had  spent  fastened  to  an  iron 
ring!  And  what  humiliation  he  endured  when  the  wood- 
cutter used  to  take  him  to  the  village  and,  with  unspeakable 
silliness,  keep  him  on  the  lead  in  front  of  everybody,  thus 
depriving  him  of  the  pleasure  of  greeting  his  friends  and 
sniffing  the  smells  provided  for  his  benefit  at  every  street- 
corner  and  in  every  gutter: 

"Well,"  he  said  to  himself,  "I  shall  have  to  submit  to 
that  humiliating  torture  once  again,  to  go  with  my  little 
god!" 

Faithful  to  his  traditions,  he  had,  in  spite  of  his  fine 


g2  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

clothes,  kept  his  dog-collar,  but  not  his  lead.  What  was 
to  be  done^  He  was  once  more  in  despair,  when  he  saw 
Water  lying  on  a  sofa  and  playing,  in  an  absent-minded 
sort  of  way,  with  her  long  strings  of  coral.  He  ran  up  to 
her  as  prettily  as  he  could  and,  after  paying  her  a  heap  of 
compliments,  begged  her  to  lend  him  her  biggest  necklace. 
She  was  in  a  good  temper  and  not  only  did  what  he  asked, 
but  was  kind  enough  to  fasten  the  end  of  the  coral  string 
to  his  collar.  Tyld  gaily  went  up  to  his  master,  handed 
him  this  necklace  chain  and,  kneeling-  at  his  feet,  said: 

"Take  me  with  you  like  this,  my  little  god!  Men  never 
say  a  word  to  a  poor  dog  when  he  is  on  his  chain!" 

"Alas,  even  like  this,  you  cannot  come!"  said  Light,  who 
was  much  touched  by  this  act  of  self-sacrifice;  and,  to  cheer 
him  up,  she  told  him  that  fate  would  soon  provide  a  trial 
for  the  Children  in  which  his  assistance  would  be  of  great 
use. 

As  she  spoke  these  words,  she  touched  the  emerald  wall, 
which  opened  to  let  her  pass  through  with  the  Children. 

Her  chariot  was  waiting  outside  the  entrance  to  the  tem- 
ple. It  was  a  lovely  shell  of  jade,  inlaid  with  gold.  They 
all  three  took  their  seats;  and  the  two  great  white  birds 
harnessed  to  it  at  once  flew  off  through  the  clouds.  The 
chariot  travelled  very  fast;  and  they  were  not  long  on  the 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  93 

road,  much  to  the  regret  of  the  Children,  who  were  en- 
joying themselves  and  laughing  like  anything;  but  other 
and  even  more  beautiful  surprises  awaited  them. 

The  clouds  vanished  around  them;  and,  suddenly,  they 
found  themselves  in  a  dazzling  azure  palace.  Here,  all 
was  blue:  the  light,  the  flagstones,  the  columns,  the  vaults; 
everything,  down  to  the  smallest  objects,  was  of  an  intense 
and  fairy-like  blue.  There  was  no  seeing  the  end  of 
the  palace;  the  eyes  were  lost  in  the  infinite  sapphire 
vistas. 

"How  lovely  it  all  is!"  said  Tyltyl,  who  could  not  get 
over  his  astonishment.  "Goodness  me,  how  lovely!  .  .  . 
Where  are  we?" 

"We  are  in  the  Kingdom  of  the  Future,"  said  Light, 
"in  the  midst  of  the  children  who  are  not  yet  born.  As 
the  diamond  allows  us  to  see  clearly  in  this  region  which  is 
hidden  from  men,  we  shall  perhaps  find  the  Blue  Bird  here. 
.  .  .  Look!     Look  at  the  children  running  up!" 

From  every  side  came  bands  of  little  children  dressed 
from  head  to  foot  in  blue;  they  had  beautiful  dark  or 
golden  hair  and  they  were  all  exquisitely  pretty.  They 
shouted  gleefully: 

"Live  Children!  .  .  .  Come  and  look  at  the  little  Live 
Children!" 


94  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"Why  do  they  call  us  the  little  Live  Children?"  asked 
Tyltyl,  of  Light. 

"It  is  because  they  themselves  are  not  alive  yet.  They 
are  awaiting  the  hour  of  their  birth,  for  it  is  from  here 
that  all  the  children  come  who  are  born  upon  our  earth. 
When  the  fathers  and  mothers  want  children,  the  great 
doors  which  you  see  over  there,  at  the  back,  are  opened; 
and  the  little  ones  go  down.  .  .  ." 

"What  a  lot  there  are!  What  a  lot  there  are!"  cried 
Tyltyl. 

"There  are  many  more,"  said  Light.  "No  one  could 
count  them.  But  go  a  little  further:  you  will  see  other 
things." 

Tyltyl  did  as  he  was  told  and  elbowed  his  way  through; 
but  it  was  difficult  for  him  to  move,  because  a  crowd  of 
Blue  Children  pressed  all  around  them.  At  last,  by  mount- 
ing on  a  step,  our  little  friend  was  able  to  look  over  the 
throng  of  inquisitive  heads  and  see  what  was  happening  in 
every  part  of  the  hall.  It  was  most  extraordinary !  Tyltyl 
had  never  dreamed  of  anything  like  it !  He  danced  with 
joy;  and  Mytyl,  who  was  hanging  on  to  him  and  standing 
on  tiptoe  so  that  she  might  see  too,  clapped  her  little  hands 
and  gave  loud  cries  of  wonder. 

All  around  were  millions  of  Children  in  blue,  some  play- 


tfhe  Kingdom  of  the  Future  95 

ing,  others  walking  about,  others  talking  or  thinking. 
Many  were  asleep;  many  also  were  at  work;  and  their  in- 
struments, their  tools,  the  machines  which  they  were  build- 
ing, the  plants,  the  flowers  and  the  fruits  which  they  were 
growing  or  gathering  were  of  the  same  bright  and  heavenly 
blue  as  the  general  appearance  of  the  palace.  Among  the 
Children  moved  tall  persons  also  dressed  in  blue :  they  were 
very  beautiful  and  looked  just  like  angels.  They  came  up 
to  Light  and  smiled  and  gently  pushed  aside  the  Blue 
Children,  who  went  back  quietly  to  what  they  were 
doing,  though  still  watching  our  friends  with  astonished 
eyes. 

One  of  them,  however,  remained  standing  close  to  Tyltyl. 
He  was  quite  small.  From  under  his  long  sky-blue  silk 
dress  peeped  two  little  pink  and  dimpled  bare  feet.  His 
eyes  stared  in  curiosity  at  the  little  Live  Boy;  and  he  went 
up  to  him  as  though  in  spite  of  himself. 

"May  I  talk  to  him?"  asked  Tyltyl,  who  felt  half-glad 
and  half-frightened. 

"Certainly,"  said  Light.  "You  must  make  friends.  .  .  . 
I  will  leave  you  alone;  you  will  be  more  at  ease  by  your- 
selves. .  .  ." 

So  saying,  she  went  away  and  left  the  two  Children  face 
to  face,  shyly  smiling.     Suddenly,  they  began  to  talk: 


96  SP he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"How  do  you  do?"  said  Tyltyl,  putting  out  his  hand  to 
the  Child. 

But  the  Child  did  not  understand  what  that  meant  and 
stood  without  moving. 

"What's  that?"  continued  Tyltyl,  touching  the  Child's 
blue  dress. 

The  Child,  who  was  absorbed  in  what  he  was  looking 
at,  did  not  answer,  but  gravely  touched  Tyltyl's  hat  with 
his  finger: 

"And  that?"  he  lisped. 

"That?  .  .  .  That's  my  hat,"  said  Tyltyl.  "Have  you 
no  hat?" 

"No;  what  is  it  for?"  asked  the  Child. 

"It's  to  say  How-do-you-do  with,"  Tyltyl  answered. 
"And  then  for  when  it's  cold.  .  .  ." 

"What  does  that  mean,  when  it's  cold?"  asked  the  Child. 

"When  you  shiver  like  this:  Brrr!  Brrr!"  said  Tyltyl. 
"And  when  you  go  like  this  with  your  arms,"  vigorously 
beating  his  arms  across  his  chest. 

"Is  it  cold  on  earth?"  asked  the  Child. 

"Yes,  sometimes,  in  winter,  when  there  is  no  fire." 

"Why  is  there  no  fire?  .  .  ." 

"Because  it's  expensive;  and  it  costs  money  to  buy 
wood.  .  .  ." 


Vhe  Kingdom  of  the  Future  QJ 

The  Child  looked  at  Tyltyl  again  as  though  he  did  not 
understand  a  word  that  Tyltyl  was  saying;  and  Tyltyl  in 
his  turn  looked  amazed : 

"It's  quite  clear  that  he  knows  nothing  of  the  most  ev- 
eryday things,"  thought  our  hero,  while  the  child  stared 
with  no  small  respect  at  "the  little  Live  Boy"  who  knew 
everything. 

Then  he  asked  Tyltyl  what  money  was. 

"Why,  it's  what  you  pay  with!"  said  Tyltyl,  scorning 
to  give  any  further  explanation. 

"Oh!"  said  the  Child,  seriously. 

Of  course,  he  did  not  understand.  How  could  he  know, 
a  little  boy  like  that,  who  lived  in  a  paradise  where  his 
least  wishes  were  granted  before  he  had  learned  to  put 
them  into  words? 

"How  old  are  you?"  asked  Tyltyl,  continuing  the  con- 
versation. 

"I  am  going  to  be  born  soon,"  said  the  Child.  "I  shall 
be  born  in  twelve  years.  ...  Is  it  nice  to  be  born?" 

"Oh,  yes,"  cried  Tyltyl,  without  thinking.  "It's  great 
fun!" 

But  he  was  very  much  at  a  loss  when  the  little  boy  asked 
him  "how  he  managed."  His  pride  did  not  allow  him  to  be 
ignorant  of  anything  in  another  child's  presence;  and  it 


98  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

was  quite  droll  to  see  him  with  his  hands  in  his  breeches- 
pockets,  his  legs  wide  apart,  his  face  upturned  and  his 
whole  attitude  that  of  a  man  who  is  in  no  hurry  to  reply. 
At  last,  he  answered,  with  a  shrug  of  the  shoulders: 

"Upon  my  word,  I  can't  remember!     It's  so  long  ago!" 

"They  say  it's  lovely,  the  earth  and  the  Live  People!" 
remarked  the  Child. 

"Yes,  it's  not  bad,"  said  Tyltyl.  "There  are  birds  and 
cakes  and  toys.  .  .  .  Some  have  them  all;  but  those  who 
have  none  can  look  at  the  others!" 

This  reflection  shows  us  the  whole  character  of  our  little 
friend.  He  was  proud  and  inclined  to  be  rather  high-and- 
mighty;  but  he  was  never  envious  and  his  generous  nature 
made  up  to  him  for  his  poverty  by  allowing  him  to  enjoy 
the  good  fortune  of  others. 

The  two  Children  talked  a  good  deal  more ;  but  it  would 
take  too  long  to  tell  you  all  they  said,  because  what  they 
said  was  sometimes  only  interesting  to  themselves.  After 
a  while,  Light,  who  was  watching  them  from  a  distance, 
hurried  up  to  them  a  little  anxiously:  Tyltyl  was  crying! 
Big  tears  came  rolling  down  his  cheeks  and  falling  on  his 
smart  coat.  She  understood  that  he  was  talking  of  his 
grandmother  and  that  he  could  not  keep  back  his  tears  at 
the  thought  of  the  love  which  he  had  lost.     He  was  turning 


r— —— ~ — 


_ 


, , __ ; 


Other  Blue  Children  opened  great  big  books 


Hhe  Kingdom  of  the  Future  99 

away  his  head,  to  hide  his  feelings;  but  the  inquisitive 
Child  kept  asking  him  questions: 

"Do  the  grannies  die?  .  .  .  What  does  that  mean,  dy- 
ing? 

"They  go  away  one  evening  and  do  not  come  back." 

"Has  yours  gone?" 

"Yes,"  said  Tyltyl.     "She  was  very  kind  to  me." 

And,  at  these  words,  the  poor  little  fellow  began  to  cry 
again. 

The  Blue  Child  had  never  seen  any  one  cry.  He  lived 
in  a  world  where  grief  did  not  exist.  His  surprise  was 
great;  and  he  exclaimed: 

"What's  the  matter  with  your  eyes?  .  .  .  Are  they  mak- 
ing pearls?" 

To  him  those  tears  were  wonderful  things. 

"No,  it's  not  pearls,"  said  Tyltyl,  sheepishly. 

"What  is  it  then?" 

But  our  poor  friend  would  not  admit  what  he  looked 
upon  as  a  weakness.  He  rubbed  his  eyes  awkwardly  and 
put  everything  down  to  the  dazzling  blue  of  the  palace. 

The  puzzled  Child  insisted: 

"What's  that  falling  down?" 

"Nothing;  it's  a  little  water,"  said  Tyltyl,  impatiently, 
hoping  to  cut  short  the  explanation. 


100  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

But  that  was  out  of  the  question.  The  Child  was  very 
obstinate,  touched  Tyltyl's  cheeks  with  his  finger  and  asked, 
in  a  tone  of  curiosity: 

"Does  it  come  from  the  eyes?  .  .  ." 

"Yes,  sometimes,  when  one  cries/' 

"What  does  that  mean,  crying?"  asked  the  Child. 

"I  have  not  been  crying,"  said  Tyltyl  proudly.  "It's  the 
fault  of  that  blue !  .  .  .  But,  if  I  had  cried,  it  would  be  the 
same  thing.  .  .  ." 

"Do  you  often  cry  on  earth?  .  .  ." 

"Not  little  boys,  but  little  girls  do»  .  =  .  Don't  you  cry 
here?" 

"No,  I  don't  know  how.  0  .  ." 

"Well,  you  will  learn.  .  .  ." 

At  that  moment,  a  great  breath  of  wind  made  him  turn 
his  head  and  he  saw,  at  a  few  steps  away  from  him,  a  large 
piece  of  machinery  which  he  had  not  noticed  at  first,  as  he 
was  taken  up  with  his  interest  in  the  little  Child.  It  was 
a  grand  and  magnificent  thing,  but  I  cannot  tell  you  its 
name,  because  the  inventions  of  the  Kingdom  of  the  Future 
will  not  be  christened  by  Man  until  they  reach  the  earth. 
I  can  only  say  that  Tyltyl,  when  he  looked  at  it,  thought 
that  the  enormous  azure  wings  that  whizzed  so  swiftly  be- 
fore his  eyes  were  like  the  windmills  in  his  part  of  the  world 


^he  Kingdom  of  the  Future  10 1 

and  that,  if  he  ever  found  the  Blue  Bird,  its  wings  would 
certainly  be  no  more  delicate,  dainty  or  dazzling.  Full  of 
admiration,  he  asked  his  new  acquaintance  what  they  were. 

"Those?"  said  the  Child.  "That's  for  the  invention 
which  I  shall  make  on  earth." 

And,  seeing  Tyltyl  stare  with  wide-open  eyes,  he  added: 

"When  I  am  on  earth,  I  shall  have  to  invent  the  thing 
that  gives  happiness.  .  .  .  Would  you  like  to  see  it?  .  .  . 
It  is  over  there,  between  those  two  columns.  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  turned  round  to  look;  but  all  the  Children  at  once 
rushed  at  him,  shouting : 

"No,  no,  come  and  see  mine !   .  .  ." 

"No,  mine  is  much  finer !  .  .  ." 

"Mine  is  a  wonderful  invention !  .  .  ." 

"Mine  is  made  of  sugar!  .  .  ." 

"His  is  no  good !  .  .  ." 

"I'm  bringing  a  light  which  nobody  knows  of !  .  .  ." 

And,  so  saying,  the  last  Child  lit  himself  up  entirely  with 
a  most  extraordinary  flame. 

Amid  these  joyous  exclamations,  the  Live  Children 
were  dragged  towards  the  blue  workshops,  where  each  of 
the  little  inventors  set  his  machine  going.  It  was  a  great 
blue  whirl  of  disks  and  pulleys  and  straps  and  fly-wheels 
and  driving-wheels  and  cog-wheels  and  all  kinds  of  wheels. 


102  ^he  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

which  sent  every  sort  of  machine  skimming  over  the  ground 
or  shooting  up  to  the  ceiling.  Other  Blue  Children  un- 
folded maps  and  plans,  or  opened  great  big  books,  or  uncov- 
ered azure  statues,  or  brought  enormous  flowers  and  gigantic 
fruits  that  seemed  made  of  sapphires  and  turquoises. 

Our  little  friends  stood  with  their  mouths  wide  open 
and  their  hands  clasped  together:  they  thought  themselves 
in  paradise.  Mytyl  bent  over  to  look  at  a  huge  flower  and 
laughed  into  its  cup,  which  covered  up  her  head  like  a  hood 
of  blue  silk.  A  pretty  Child,  with  dark  hair  and  thoughtful 
eyes,  held  it  by  the  stalk  and  said,  proudly: 

"The  flowers  will  all  grow  like  that,  when  I  am  on 
earth!" 

"When  will  that  be?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

'In  fifty-three  years,  four  months  and  nine  days." 

Next  came  two  Blue  Children  bending  under  the  weight 
of  a  pole  from  which  was  slung  a  bunch  of  grapes  each 
larger  than  a  pear. 

"A  bunch  of  pears!"  cried  Tyltyl. 

"No,  they  are  grapes,"  said  the  Child.  "They  will  all 
be  like  that  when  I  am  thirty :     I  have  found  the  way.  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  would  have  loved  to  taste  them,  but  another  Child 
came  along  almost  hidden  under  a  basket  which  one  of  the 
tall  persons  was  helping  him  to  carry.     His  fair-haired, 


! 


Other  Blue  Children  unfolded  maps  and  plans,  or  brought 
enormous  flowers 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  103 

rosy  face  smiled  through  the  leaves  that  hung  over  the 
wicker-work. 

"Look!"  he  said.     "Look  at  my  apples.  .  .  ." 

"But  those  are  melons!"  said  Tyltyl. 

"No,  no!"  said  the  Child.  "They  are  my  apples!  They 
will  all  be  alike  when  I  am  alive!  I  have  discovered  the 
process!  .  .  ." 

I  should  never  finish  if  I  were  to  try  and  describe  to 
my  little  readers  all  the  wonderful  and  incredible  things 
that  appeared  before  our  hero's  eyes.  But,  suddenly,  a 
loud  burst  of  laughter  rang  through  the  hall.  A  Child 
had  spoken  of  the  King  of  the  Nine  Planets;  and  Tyltyl, 
very  much  puzzled  and  perplexed,  looked  on  every  side. 
All  the  faces,  bright  with  laughter,  were  turned  to  some  spot 
which  Tyltyl  could  not  see;  every  hnger  pointed  in  the 
same  direction;  but  our  friend  looked  in  vain.  They  had 
spoken  of  a  king!  He  was  looking  for  a  throne  with  a 
tall,  dignified  personage  on  it,  wielding  a  golden  sceptre. 

"Over  there  .  .  .  over  there  .  .  .  lower  down  .  .  .  be- 
hind you!"  said  a  thousand  little  voices  together. 

"But  where  is  the  King*?"  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  repeated, 
greatly  interested. 

Then,  suddenly,  a  louder  and  more  serious  voice  sounded 
above  the  silvery  murmur  of  the  others: 


104  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Here  I  am!"  it  said  proudly. 

And,  at  the  same  time,  Tyltyl  discovered  a  chubby  baby 
which  he  had  not  yet  remarked,  for  it  was  the  smallest  and 
had  kept  out  of  the  way  till  then,  sitting  at  the  foot  of  a 
column  in  an  attitude  of  indifference,  seemingly  rapt  in 
contemplation.  The  little  King  was  the  only  one  who  had 
taken  no  notice  of  the  "Live  Children."  His  beautiful, 
liquid  eyes,  eyes  as  blue  as  the  palace,  were  pursuing  end- 
less dreams;  his  right  hand  supported  his  head,  which  was 
already  heavy  with  thought;  his  short  tunic  showed  his 
dimpled  knees;  and  a  golden  crown  rested  on  his  yellow 
locks.  When  he  cried,  "Here  I  am!"  the  baby  rose  from  the 
step  on  which  he  was  sitting  and  tried  to  climb  on  to  it 
at  one  stride;  but  he  was  still  so  awkward  that  he  lost  his 
balance  and  fell  upon  his  nose.  He  at  once  picked  himself 
up  with  so  much  dignity  that  nobody  dared  make  fun  of 
him;  and,  this  time,  he  scrambled  up  on  all  fours  and  then, 
putting  his  legs  wide  apart,  stood  and  eyed  Tyltyl  from  top 
to  toe. 

"You're  not  very  big!"  said  Tyltyl,  doing  his  best  to  keep 
from  laughing. 

"I  shall  do  great  things  when  I  am!"  retorted  the  King, 
in  a  tone  that  admitted  of  no  reply. 

"And  what  will  you  do?"  asked  Tyltyl. 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  105 

"I  shall  found  the  General  Confederation  of  the  Solar 
Planets,"  said  the  King,  in  a  very  pompous  voice. 

Our  friend  was  so  much  impressed  that  he  could  not  find 
a  word  to  say;  and  the  King  continued: 

"All  the  Planets  will  belong  to  it,  except  Uranus,  Saturn 
and  Neptune,  which  are  too  ridiculously  far  away." 

Thereupon,  he  toddled  off  the  step  again  and  resumed 
his  first  attitude,  showing  that  he  had  said  all  that  he  meant 
to  say. 

Tyltyl  left  him  to  his  meditations;  he  was  eager  to  know 
as  many  more  of  the  Children  as  he  could.  He  was  intro- 
duced to  the  discoverer  of  a  new  sun,  to  the  inventor  of  a 
new  joy,  to  the  hero  who  was  to  wipe  out  injustice  from 
the  earth  and  to  the  wiseacre  who  was  to  conquer  Death.  .  .  . 
There  were  such  lots  and  lots  of  them  that  it  would  take 
days  and  days  to  name  them  all.  Our  friend  was  rather 
tired  and  was  beginning  to  feel  bored,  when  his  attention 
was  suddenly  aroused  by  hearing  a  Child's  voice  calling 
him: 

"Tyltyl!  .  .  .  Tyltyl!  .  .  .  How  are  you,  Tyltyl,  how 
are  you4?  .  .  ." 

A  little  Blue  Child  came  running  up  from  the  back  of  the 
hall,  pushing  his  way  through  the  crowd.  He  was  fair 
aad  slim  and  bright-eyed  and  had  a  great  look  of  Mytyl. 


106  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"How  do  you  know  my  name?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

"It's  not  surprising,"  said  the  Blue  Child,  "considering 
that  I  shall  be  your  brother!" 

This  time,  the  Live  Children  were  absolutely  amazed. 
What  an  extraordinary  meeting !  They  must  certainly  tell 
Mummy  as  soon  as  they  got  back!  How  astonished  they 
would  be  at  home ! 

While  they  were  making  these  reflections,  the  Child  went 
on  to  explain : 

"I  am  coming  to  you  next  year,  on  Palm  Sunday,"  he 
said. 

And  he  put  a  thousand  questions  to  his  big  brother :  was 
it  comfortable  at  home?  Was  the  food  good?  Was 
Daddy  very  severe?    And  Mummy? 

"Oh,  Mummy  is  so  kind!"  said  the  little  ones. 

And  they  asked  him  questions  in  their  turn:  what  was 
he  going  to  do  on  earth?    What  was  he  bringing? 

"I  am  bringing  three  illnesses,"  said  the  little  brother. 
"Scarlatina,  whooping-cough  and  measles.  .  .  ." 

"Oh,  that's  all,  is  it?"  cried  Tyltyl. 

He  shook  his  head,  with  evident  disappointment,  while 
the  other  continued: 

"After  that,  I  shall  leave  you!" 


rfke  Kingdom  of  the  Future  107 

"It  will  hardly  be  worth  while  coming!"  said  Tyltyl, 
feeling  rather  vexed. 

"We  can't  pick  and  choose!"  said  the  little  brother,  pet- 
tishly. 

They  would  perhaps  have  quarrelled,  without  waiting 
till  they  were  on  earth,  if  they  had  not  suddenly  been 
parted  by  a  swarm  of  Blue  Children  who  were  hurrying 
to  meet  somebody.  At  the  same  time,  there  was  a  great 
noise,  as  if  thousands  of  invisible  doors  were  being  opened 
at  the  end  of  the  galleries. 

"What's  the  matter?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

"It's  Time,"  said  one  of  the  Blue  Children.  "He's  going 
to  open  the  doors." 

And  the  excitement  increased  on  every  side.  The  Chil- 
dren left  their  machines  and  their  labours;  those  who  were 
asleep  woke  up;  and  every  eye  was  eagerly  and  anxiously 
turned  to  the  great  opal  doors  at  the  back,  while  every 
mouth  repeated  the  same  name.  The  word,  "Time! 
Time!"  was  heard  all  around;  and  the  great  mysterious 
noise  kept  on.  Tyltyl  was  dying  to  know  what  it  meant, 
At  last,  he  caught  a  little  Child  by  the  skirt  of  his  dress  and 
asked  him. 

"Let  me  be,"  said  the  Child,  very  uneasily.  "I'm  in  a 
hurry:  it  may  be  my  turn  to-day.  ...  It  is  the  Dawn 


108  'The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

rising.  This  is  the  hour  when  the  Children  who  are  to  be 
born  to-day  go  down  to  earth.  .  .  .  You  shall  see.  .  .  . 
Time  is  drawing  the  bolts.  .  .  ." 

"Who  is  Time?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

"An  old  man  who  comes  to  call  those  who  are  going," 
said  another  Child.  "He  is  not  so  bad;  but  he  won't  listen 
or  hear.  Beg  as  they  may,  if  it's  not  their  turn,  he 
pushes  back  all  those  who  try  to  go.  .  .  .  Let  me  be!  It 
may  be  my  turn  now !" 

Light  now  hastened  towards  our  little  friends  in  a  great 
state  of  alarm: 

"I  was  looking  for  you,"  she  said.  "Come  quick:  it  will 
never  do  for  Time  to  discover  you." 

As  she  spoke  these  words,  she  threw  her  gold  cloak  around 
the  Children  and  dragged  them  to  a  corner  of  the  hall, 
where  they  could  see  everything,  without  being  seen. 

Tyltyl  was  very  glad  to  be  so  well  protected.  He  now 
knew  that  he  who  was  about  to  appear  possessed  so  great 
and  tremendous  a  power  that  no  human  strength  was  capa- 
ble of  resisting  him.  He  was  at  the  same  time  a  deity  and 
an  ogre;  he  bestowed  life  and  he  devoured  it;  he  sped 
through  the  world  so  fast  that  you  had  no  time  to  see  him ; 
he  ate  and  ate,  without  stopping;  he  took  whatever 
he  touched-     In   Tyltyl's  family,  he  had  already  taken 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  109 

Grandad  and  Granny,  the  little  brothers,  the  little  sisters 
and  the  old  blackbird!  He  did  not  mind  what  he  took: 
joys  and  sorrows,  winters  and  summers,  all  was  fish  that 
came  to  his  net !  .  .  . 

Knowing  this,  our  friend  was  astonished  to  see  every- 
body in  the  Kingdom  of  the  Future  running  so  fast  to  meet 
him: 

"I  suppose  he  doesn't  eat  anything  here,"  he  thought. 

There  he  was!  The  great  doors  turned  slowly  on  their 
hinges.  There  was  a  distant  music:  it  was  the  sounds  of 
the  earth.  A  red  and  green  light  penetrated  into  the  hall; 
and  Time  appeared  on  the  threshold.  He  was  a  tall  and 
very  thin  old  man,  so  old  that  his  wrinkled  face  was  all 
grey,  like  dust.  His  white  beard  came  down  to  his  knees 
In  one  hand,  he  carried  an  enormous  scythe;  in  the  other, 
an  hour-glass.  Behind  him,  some  way  out,  on  a  sea  the 
colour  of  the  Dawn,  was  a  magnificent  gold  galley,  with 
white  sails. 

"Are  they  ready  whose  hour  has  struck?"  asked  Time. 
At  the  sound  of  that  voice,  solemn  and  deep  as  a  bronze 
gong,  thousands  of  bright  children's  voices,  like  little  silver 
bells,  answered: 

"Here  we  are!  .  .  .  Here  we  are!  .  .  .  Here  we 
are.'  .  .  ." 


HO  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

And,  in  a  moment,  the  Blue  Children  were  crowding 
round  the  tall  old  man,  who  pushed  them  all  back  and,  in 
a  gruff  voice,  said: 

"One  at  a  time!  .  .  .  Once  again,  there  are  many 
more  of  you  than  are  wanted!  .  .  .  You  can't  deceive 
me!" 

Brandishing  his  scythe  in  one  hand  and  holding  out  his 
cloak  with  the  other,  he  barred  the  way  to  the  rash  Chil- 
dren who  tried  to  slip  by  him.  Not  one  of  them  escaped 
the  horrid  old  man's  watchful  eye: 

"It's  not  your  turn!"  he  said  to  one.  "You're  to  be  born 
to-morrow!  .  .  .  Nor  yours  either,  you've  got  ten  years  to 
wait.  .  .  c  A  thirteenth  shepherd?  .  .  .  There  are  only 
twelve  wanted ;  there  is  no  need  for  more.  .  .  .  More  doc- 
tors? .  .  .  There  are  too  many  already;  they  are  grum- 
bling about  it  on  earth.  .  .  .  And  where  are  the  engineers? 
.  .  .  They  want  an  honest  man;  only  one,  as  a  wonder- 
ful being." 

Thereupon,  a  poor  Child,  who  had  hung  back,  until  then, 
came  forward  timidly,  sucking  his  thumb.  He  looked  pale 
and  sad  and  walked  with  tottering  footsteps;  he  was  so 
wretched  that  even  Time  felt  a  moment's  pity: 

"It's  you!"  he  exclaimed.  "You  seem  a  very  poor  speci- 
men!" 


r  h.a  , 


And,  in  a  moment,  the  Blue  Children  were  crowding  round  the 

tall  old  man 


The  Kingdom  of  the  Future  1 1 1 

And,  lifting  his  eyes  to  the  sky,  with  a  look  of  discour- 
agement, he  added : 

"You  won't  live  long!" 

And  the  movement  went  on.  Each  Child,  when  denied, 
returned  to  his  employment  with  a  downcast  air.  When 
one  of  them  was  accepted,  the  others  looked  at  him  with 
envy.  Now  and  then,  something  happened,  as  when  the 
hero  who  was  to  fight  against  injustice  refused  to  go.  He 
clung  to  his  playfellows,  who  called  out  to  Time: 

"He  doesn't  want  to,  Sir!" 

"No,  I  don't  want  to  go,"  cried  the  little  fellow,  with  all 
his  might.     "I  would  rather  not  be  born." 

"And  quite  right  too!"  thought  Tyltyl,  who  was  full  of 
common-sense  and  who  knew  what  things  are  like  on  earth. 

For  people  always  get  beatings  which  they  have  not  de- 
served ;  and,  when  they  have  done  wrong,  you  may  be  sure 
that  the  punishment  will  fall  on  one  of  their  innocent 
friends. 

"I  wouldn't  care  to  be  in  his  place,"  said  our  friend  to 
himself.  "I  would  rather  hunt  for  the  Blue  Bird,  any 
day!" 

Meanwhile,  the  little  seeker  after  justice  went  away  sob- 
bing, frightened  out  of  his  life  by  Mr.  Time. 

The  excitement  was  now  at  its  height.     The  Children 


112  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

ran  all  over  the  hall :  those  who  were  going  packed  up  their 
inventions;  those  who  were  staying  behind  had  a  thousand 
requests  to  make: 

"Will  you  write  to  me?" 

"They  say  one  can't!" 

"Oh,  try,  do  try!" 

"Announce  my  idea!" 

"Good-bye,  Jean.  .  .  .  Good-bye,  Pierre !" 

"Have  you  forgotten  anything?" 

"Don't  lose  your  ideas!" 

"Try  to  tell  us  if  it's  nice!" 

"Enough!  Enough!"  roared  Time,  in  a  huge  voice, 
shaking  his  big  keys  and  his  terrible  scythe.  "Enough! 
The  anchor's  weighed.  .  .  ." 

Then  the  Children  climbed  into  the  gold  galley,  with  the 
beautiful  white  silk  sails.  They  waved  their  hands  again 
to  the  little  friends  whom  they  were  leaving  behind  them; 
but,  on  seeing  the  earth  in  the  distance,  they  cried  out, 
gladly : 

"Earth!    Earth!  .  .  .  I  can  see  it!  .  .  ." 

"How  bright  it  is !  .  .  ." 

"How  big  it  is!  .  .  ." 

And,  at  the  same  time,  as  though  coming  from  the  abyss, 
a  song  rose,  a  distant  song  of  gladness  and  expectation. 


the  Kingdom  of  the  Future  113 

Light,  who  was  listening  with  a  smile,  saw  the  look  of 
astonishment  on  Tyltyl's  face  and  bent  over  him: 

"It  is  the  song  of  the  mothers  coming  out  to  meet  them," 
she  said. 

At  that  moment,  Time,  who  had  shut  the  doors,  saw  our 
friends  and  rushed  at  them  angrily,  shaking  his  scythe  at 
them. 

"Hurry!"  said  Light.  "Hurry!  Take  the  Blue  Bird, 
Tyltyl,  and  go  in  front  of  me  with  Mytyl." 

She  put  into  the  boy's  arms  a  bird  which  she  held  hidden 
under  her  cloak  and,  all  radiant,  spreading  her  dazzling 
veil  with  her  two  hands,  she  ran  on,  protecting  her  charges 
from  the  onslaught  of  Time. 

In  this  way,  they  passed  through  several  turquoise  and 
sapphire  galleries.  It  was  magnificently  beautiful,  but 
they  were  in  the  Kingdom  of  the  Future,  where  Time  was 
the  great  master,  and  they  must  escape  from  his  anger  which 
they  had  braved. 

Mytyl  was  terribly  frightened  and  Tyltyl  kept  nerv- 
ously turning  round  to  Light. 

"Don't  be  afraid,"  she  said.  "I  am  the  only  person 
whom  Time  has  respected  since  the  world  began.  Only 
mind  that  you  take  care  of  the  Blue  Bird.  He's  gorgeous ! 
He  is  quite,  quite  blue!" 


114  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

This  thought  enraptured  the  boy.  He  felt  the  precious 
treasure  fluttering  in  his  arms;  his  hands  dared  not  press 
the  pretty  creature's  soft,  warm  wings;  and  his  heart  beat 
against  its  heart.  This  time,  he  held  the  Blue  Bird! 
Nothing  could  touch  it,  because  it  was  given  to  him  by 
Light  herself.  What  a  triumph  when  he  returned 
home!  ... 

He  was  so  bewildered  by  his  happiness  that  he  hardly 
knew  where  he  was  going;  his  joy  rang  a  victorious  peal 
in  his  head  that  made  him  feel  giddy;  he  was  mad  with 
pride;  and  this,  worse  luck,  made  him  lose  his  coolness  and 
his  presence  of  mind!  They  were  just  about  to  cross  the 
threshold  of  the  palace,  when  a  gust  of  wind  swept  through 
the  entrance-hall,  lifting  up  Light's  veil  and  at  last  reveal- 
ing the  two  Children  to  the  eyes  of  Time,  who  was  still 
pursuing  them.  With  a  roar  of  rage,  he  darted  his  scythe 
at  Tyltyl,  who  cried  out.  Light  warded  off  the  blow;  and 
the  door  of  the  palace  closed  behind  them  with  a  thud. 
They  were  saved!  .  .  .  But  alas,  Tyltyl,  taken  by  sur- 
prise, had  opened  his  arms  and  now,  through  his  tears,  saw 
the  Bird  of  the  Future  soaring  above  their  heads,  mingling 
with  the  azure  sky  its  dream-wings  so  blue,  so  light  and  so 
transparent  that  soon  the  boy  could  make  out  nothing 
more.  .  .  . 


CHAPTER  VI 

IN    THE    TEMPLE    OF    LIGHT 

Tyltyl  had  enjoyed  himself  thoroughly  in  the  Kingdom 
of  the  Future.  He  had  seen  many  wonderful  things  and 
thousands  of  little  playfellows  and  then,  without  taking  the 
least  pains  or  trouble,  had  found  the  Blue  Bird  in  his  arms 
in  the  most  magical  way.  He  had  never  pictured  any- 
thing more  beautiful,  more  blue  or  brilliant;  and  he  still 
felt  it  fluttering  against  his  heart  and  kept  hugging  his  arms 
to  his  breast  as  though  the  Blue  Bird  were  there. 

Alas,  it  had  vanished  like  a  dream! 

He  was  thinking  sadly  of  this  latest  disappointment  as 
he  walked  hand-in-hand  with  Light.  They  were  back  in 
the  Temple  and  were  going  to  the  vaults  where  the  Animals 
and  Things  had  been  shut  up.  What  a  sight  met  their  eyes ! 
The  wretches  had  eaten  and  drunk  such  a  lot  that  they  were 
lying  on  the  floor  quite  tipsy!  Tylo  himself  had  lost  all 
his  dignity.  He  had  rolled  under  the  table  and  was  snor- 
ing like  a  porpoise.  His  instinct  remained;  and  the  sound 
of  the  door  made  him  prick  up  his  ears.     He  opened  one 

117 


1 18  Hhe  Children's  Blue  Bird 

eye,  but  his  sight  was  troubled  by  all  that  he  had  had  to 
drink  and  he  did  not  know  his  little  master  when  he  saw 
him.  He  dragged  himself  to  his  feet  with  a  great  effort, 
turned  round  several  times  and  then  dropped  on  the  floor 
again  with  a  grunt  of  satisfaction. 

Bread  and  the  others  were  as  bad ;  and  the  only  exception 
was  the  Cat,  who  was  sitting  up  prettily  on  a  marble  and 
gold  bench  and  seemed  in  full  possession  of  her  senses. 
She  sprang  nimbly  to  the  ground  and  stepped  up  to  Tyltyl 
with  a  smile : 

"I  have  been  longing  to  see  you,"  she  said,  "for  I  have 
been  very  unhappy  among  all  these  vulgar  people.  They 
first  drank  all  the  wine  and  then  started  shouting  and  sing- 
ing and  dancing,  quarrelling  and  fighting  and  making  such 
a  noise  that  I  was  very  glad  when,  at  last,  they  fell  into  a 
tipsy  sleep." 

The  children  praised  her  warmly  for  her  good  behaviour. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  was  no  great  merit  in  this,  for  she 
could  not  stand  anything  stronger  than  milk;  but  we  are 
seldom  rewarded  when  by  rights  we  ought  to  be  and  some- 
times are  when  we  have  not  deserved  it. 

After  fondly  kissing  the  children,  Tylette  asked  a  favour 
of  Light : 

"I  have  had  such  a  wretched  time,"  she  whined.     "Let 


In  the  temple  of  Light  119 

me  go  out  for  a  little  while;  it  will  do  me  good  to  be 
alone." 

Light  gave  her  consent  without  suspecting  anything;  and 
the  Cat  at  once  draped  her  cloak  round  her,  put  her  hat 
straight,  pulled  up  her  soft  grey  boots  over  her  knees, 
opened  the  door  and  ran  and  bounded  out  into  the  forest. 
We  shall  know,  a  little  later,  where  treacherous  Tylette 
was  going  so  gaily  and  what  was  the  horrid  plot  which  she 
was  mysteriously  concocting. 

As  on  the  other  days,  the  Children  had  their  dinner  with 
Light  in  a  large  room  all  encrusted  with  diamonds.  The 
servants  bustled  around  them  smiling  and  brought  deli- 
cious dishes  and  cakes. 

After  dinner,  our  little  friends  began  to  yawn.  They 
felt  sleepy  very  early,  after  all  their  adventures;  and,  Light 
— ever  kind  and  thoughtful — made  them  live  as  they  were 
accustomed  to  on  earth.  So  as  not  to  injure  their  health  by 
altering  their  habits,  she  had  set  up  their  little  beds  in  a  part 
of  the  temple  where  the  darkness  would  seem  like  night  to 
them. 

They  went  through  any  number  of  rooms  to  reach  their 
bedroom.  They  had  first  to  pass  all  the  lights  known  to 
Man  and  then  those  which  Man  did  not  yet  know. 

There  were  great  sumptuous  apartments  in  splendid  mar- 


120  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

ble,  lit  up  by  rays  so  white  and  strong  that  the  children 
were  quite  dazzled. 

'That  is  the  Light  of  the  Rich,"  said  Light  to  Tyltyl. 
"You  see  how  dangerous  it  is.  People  run  the  risk  of  going 
blind  when  they  live  too  much  in  its  rays,  which  leave  no 
room  for  soft  and  kindly  shade." 

And  she  hurried  them  on  so  that  they  might  rest  their  eyes 
in  the  gentle  Light  of  the  Poor.  Here,  the  Children  sud- 
denly felt  as  if  they  were  in  their  parents'  cottage,  where 
everything  was  so  humble  and  peaceful.  The  faint  light 
was  very  pure  and  clear,  but  always  flickering  and  ready  to 
go  out  at  the  least  breath. 

Next  they  came  to  the  beautiful  Light  of  the  Poets,  which 
they  liked  immensely,  for  it  had  all  the  colours  of  the  rain- 
bow; and,  when  you  passed  through  it,  you  saw  lovely 
pictures,  lovely  flowers  and  lovely  toys  which  you  were 
unable  to  take  hold  of.  Laughing  merrily,  the  children  ran 
after  birds  and  butterflies,  but  everything  faded  away  as 
soon  as  it  was  touched. 

"Well,  I  never!"  said  Tyltyl,  as  he  came  panting  back  to 
Light.     "This  beats  everything!     I  can't  understand  it!" 

"You  will  understand  later,"  she  replied,  "and,  if  you 
understand  it  properly,  you  will  be  among  the  very  few 
human  beings  who  know  the  Blue  Bird  when  they  see  him." 


In  the  temple  of  Light  121 

After  leaving  the  region  of  the  Poets,  our  friends  reached 
the  Light  of  the  Learned,  which  lies  on  the  borders  of  the 
known  and  the  unknown  lights: 

"Let's  get  on,"  said  Tyltyl.      "This  is  boring." 

To  tell  the  truth,  he  was  a  little  bit  frightened,  for  they 
were  in  a  long  row  of  cold  and  forbidding  arches,  which  were 
streaked  at  every  moment  by  dazzling  lightning-flashes; 
and,  at  each  flash,  you  saw  out-of-the-way  things  that  had 
no  name  as  yet. 

After  these  arches,  they  came  to  the  Lights  Unknown  to 
Man;  and  Tyltyl,  in  spite  of  the  sleep  that  pressed  upon 
his  eyelids,  could  not  help  admiring  the  hall  with  its  violet 
columns  and  the  gallery  with  its  red  rays.  And  the  violet 
of  the  columns  was  such  a  dark  violet  and  the  red  of  the 
rays  such  a  pale  red  that  it  was  hardly  possible  to  see  either 
of  them. 

At  last,  they  arrived  at  the  room  of  smooth,  unflecked 
Black  Light,  which  men  call  Darkness  because  their  eyes 
are  not  yet  able  to  make  it  out.  And  here  the  Children  fell 
asleep  without  delay  on  two  soft  beds  of  clouds. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE    GRAVEYARD 

When  the  Children  were  not  going  on  an  expedition,  they 
played  about  in  the  Realms  of  Light;  and  this  was  a  great 
treat  for  them,  for  the  gardens  and  the  country  around  the 
temple  were  as  wonderful  as  the  halls  and  galleries  of  sil- 
ver and  gold. 

The  leaves  of  some  of  the  plants  were  so  broad  and  strong 
that  they  were  able  to  lie  down  on  them;  and,  when  a 
breath  of  wind  stirred  the  leaves,  the  Children  swung  as  in 
a  hammock.  It  was  always  summer  there  and  never  a  mo- 
ment was  darkened  by  the  night;  but  the  hours  were  known 
by  their  different  colours;  there  were  pink,  white,  blue, 
lilac,  green  and  yellow  hours;  and,  according  to  their  hues, 
the  flowers,  the  fruits,  the  birds,  the  butterflies  and  the 
scents  changed,  causing  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  a  constant  sur- 
prise. They  had  all  the  toys  that  they  could  wish  for. 
When  they  were  tired  of  playing,  they  stretched  themselves 
out  on  the  backs  of  the  lizards,  which  were  as  long  and  wide 
as  little  boats,  and  quickly,  quickly  raced  round  the  garden- 

125 


126  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

paths,  over  the  sand  which  was  as  white  and  as  good  to  eat 
as  sugar.  When  they  were  thirsty,  Water  shook  her  tresses 
into  the  cup  of  the  enormous  flowers;  and  the  Children 
drank  straight  out  of  the  lilies,  tulips  and  morning-glories. 
If  they  were  hungry,  they  picked  radiant  fruits  which  re 
vealed  the  taste  of  Light  to  them  and  which  had  juice  that 
shone  like  the  rays  of  the  sun. 

There  was  also,  in  a  clump  of  bushes,  a  white  marble 
pond  which  possessed  a  magic  power:  its  clear  waters  re- 
flected not  the  faces,  but  the  souls  of  those  who  looked 
into  it. 

"It's  a  ridiculous  invention,"  said  the  Cat,  who  steadily 
refused  to  go  near  the  pond. 

You,  my  dear  little  readers,  who  know  her  thoughts  as 
well  as  I  do,  will  not  be  surprised  at  her  refusal.  And  you 
will  also  understand  why  our  faithful  Tylo  was  not  afraid 
to  go  and  quench  his  thirst  there :  he  need  not  fear  to  reveal 
his  thoughts,  for  he  was  the  only  creature  whose  soul  never 
altered.  The  dear  Dog  had  no  feelings  but  those  of  love 
and  kindness  and  devotion. 

When  Tyltyl  bent  over  the  magic  mirror,  he  almost 
always  saw  the  picture  of  a  splendid  Blue  Bird,  for  the 
constant  wish  to  find  him  filled  his  mind  entirely.  Then  he 
would  run  to  Light  and  entreat  her: 


tfhe  Graveyard  127 

"Tell  me  where  he  is!  .  .  .  You  know  everything:  tell 
me  where  to  find  him!" 

But  she  replied,  in  a  tone  of  mystery : 

"I  cannot  tell  you  anything.  You  must  find  him  for 
yourself."  And,  kissing  him,  she  added,  "Cheer  up ;  you  are 
getting  nearer  to  him  at  each  trial." 

Now  there  came  a  day  on  which  she  said  to  him : 

"I  have  received  a  message  from  the  Fairy  Berylune  tell- 
ing me  that  the  Blue  Bird  is  probably  hidden  in  the  grave- 
yard. ...  It  appears  that  one  of  the  Dead  in  the  grave- 
yard is  keeping  him  in  his  tomb.   .   .   ." 

"What  shall  we  do?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

"It  is  very  simple:  at  midnight  you  will  turn  the 
diamond  and  you  shall  see  the  Dead  come  out  of  the 
ground." 

At  these  words,  Milk,  Water,  Bread  and  Sugar  began  to 
yell  and  scream  and  chatter  their  teeth. 

"Don't  mind  them,"  said  Light  to  Tyltyl,  in  a  whisper. 
"They  are  afraid  of  the  Dead." 

"I'm  not  afraid  of  them!"  said  Fire,  frisking  about. 
"Time  was  when  I  used  to  burn  them;  that  was  much  more 
amusing  than  nowadays." 

"Oh,  I  feel  I  am  going  to  turn,"  wailed  Milk. 

"I'm  not  afraid,"  said  the  Dog,  trembling  in  every  limb, 


128  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"but  if  you  run  away  ...  I  shall  run  away  too  .  .  .  and 
with  the  greatest  pleasure  .  .  ." 

The  Cat  sat  pulling  at  her  whiskers : 

"I  know  what's  what,"  she  said,  in  her  usual  mysterious 
way. 

"Be  quiet,"  said  Light.  "The  Fairy  gave  strict  orders. 
You  are  all  to  stay  with  me,  at  the  gate  of  the  graveyard; 
the  Children  are  to  go  in  alone." 

Tyltyl  felt  anything  but  pleased.     He  asked : 

"Aren't  you  coming  with  us?" 

"No,"  said  Light.  "The  time  for  that  has  not  arrived. 
Light  cannot  yet  enter  among  the  Dead.  Besides,  there  is 
nothing  to  fear.  I  shall  not  be  far  away;  and  those  who 
love  me  and  whom  I  love  always  find  me  again  .  .  ." 

She  had  not  finished  speaking,  when  everything  around 
the  Children  changed.  The  wonderful  temple,  the  daz- 
zling flowers,  the  splendid  gardens  vanished  to  make  way 
tor  a  poor  little  country  cemetery,  which  lay  in  the  soft 
moonlight.  Near  the  Children  were  a  number  of  graves, 
grassy  mounds,  wooden  crosses  and  tombstones.  Tyltyl 
and  Mytyl  were  seized  with  terror  and  hugged  each  other : 

"I  am  frightened!"  said  Mytyl. 

"I  am  never  frightened,"  stammered  Tyltyl,  who  was 
shaking  with  fear,  but  did  not  like  to  say  so. 


The  Graveyard  129 

"I  say,"  asked  Mytyl,  "are  the  Dead  wicked?" 

"Why,  no,"  said  Tyltyl,  "they're  not  alive !   .  .  ." 

"Have  you  ever  seen  one?" 

"Yes,  once,  long  ago,  when  I  was  very  young  .  .  ." 

"What  was  it  like?" 

"Quite  white,  very  still  and  very  cold;  and  it  didn't 
talk  .  .  ." 

"Are  we  going  to  see  them?" 

Tyltyl  shuddered  at  this  question  and  made  an  unsuccess- 
ful effort  to  steady  his  voice  as  he  answered : 

"Why,  of  course,  Light  said  so!" 

''Where  are  the  Dead?"  asked  Mytyl. 

Tyltyl  cast  a  frightened  look  around  him,  for  the  Chil- 
dren had  not  dared  to  stir  since  they  were  alone : 

"The  Dead  are  here,"  he  said,  "under  the  grass  or  under 
those  big  stones." 

"Are  those  the  doors  of  their  houses?"  asked  Mytyl. 
pointing  to  the  tombstones. 

"Yes." 

"Do  they  go  out  when  it's  fine?" 

"They  can  only  go  out  at  night." 

"Why?" 

"Because  they  are  in  their  nightshirts." 

"Do  they  go  out  also  when  it  rains?" 


130  'The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"When  it  rains,  they  stay  at  home." 

"Is  it  nice  in  their  homes?" 

"They  say  it's  very  cramped." 

"Have  they  any  little  children?" 

"Why,  yes,  they  have  all  those  who  die." 

"And  what  do  they  live  on?" 

Tyltyl  stopped  to  think,  before  answering.  As  MytyFs 
big  brother,  he  felt  it  his  duty  to  know  everything;  but  her 
questions  often  puzzled  him.  Then  he  reflected  that,  as 
the  Dead  live  under  ground,  they  can  hardly  eat  anything 
that  is  above  it;  and  so  he  answered  very  positively: 

"They  eat  roots !" 

Mytyl  was  quite  satisfied  and  returned  to  the  great  ques- 
tion that  was  occupying  her  little  mind : 

"Shall  we  see  them?"  she  asked. 

"Of  course,"  said  Tyltyl,  "we  see  everything  when  I  turn 
the  diamond." 

"And  what  will  they  say?" 

Tyltyl  began  to  grow  impatient: 

"They  will  say  nothing,  as  they  don't  talk." 

"Why  don't  they  talk?"  asked  Mytyl. 

"Because  they  have  nothing  to  say,"  said  Tyltyl,  more 
cross  and  perplexed  than  ever. 

"Why  have  they  nothing  to  say?" 


The  Graveyard  131 

This  time,  the  little  big  brother  lost  all  patience.  He 
shrugged  his  shoulders,  gave  Mytyl  a  push  and  shouted 
angrily : 

"You're  a  nuisance!  .  .  ." 

Mytyl  was  greatly  upset  and  confused.  She  sucked  her 
thumb  and  resolved  to  hold  her  tongue  for  ever  after,  as 
she  had  been  so  badly  treated !  But  a  breath  of  wind  made 
the  leaves  of  the  trees  whisper  and  suddenly  recalled  the 
Children  to  their  fears  and  their  sense  of  loneliness.  They 
hugged  each  other  tight  and  began  to  talk  again,  so  as  not 
to  hear  the  horrible  silence : 

"When  will  you  turn  the  diamond?"  asked  Mytyl. 

"You  heard  Light  say  that  I  was  to  wait  until  midnight, 
because  that  disturbs  them  less;  it  is  when  they  come  out 
to  take  the  air.  .  .  ." 

"Isn't  it  midnight  yet  .  .  ." 

Tyltyl  turned  round,  saw  the  church  clock  and  hardly  had 
the  strength  to  answer,  for  the  hands  were  just  upon  the 
hour : 

"Listen,"  he  stammered,  "listen  ...  It  is  just  going  to 
strike  .  .  .  There!  .  .  .  Do  you  hear?  .  .  ." 

And  the  clock  struck  twelve. 

Then  Mytyl,  frightened  out  of  her  life,  began  to  stamp 
her  feet  and  utter  piercing  screams : 


132  tfhe  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"I  want  to  go  away!  ...  I  want  to  go  away!  .  .  ." 
Tyltyl,  though  stiff  with  fright,  was  able  to  say: 
"Not  now  ...  I  am  going  to  turn  the  diamond  .  .  ." 
"No,  no,  no!"  cried  Mytyl.     "I  am  so  frightened,  little 

brother!  .  .  .  Don't  do  it!   .  .  .  I  want  to  go  away!  .  .  ,': 
Tyltyl  vainly  tried  to  lift  his  hand :  he  could  not  reach  the 

diamond  with  Mytyl  clinging  to  him,  hanging  with  all  her 

weight  on  her  brother's  arm  and  screaming  at  the  top  of  her 

voice: 

"I  don't  want  to  see  the  Dead !  .  .  .  They  will  be  awful ! 

.  .  .  I  can't  possibly !  .  .  .  I  am  much  too  frightened !  .  .  ." 
Poor  Tyltyl  was  quite  as  much  terrified  as  Mytyl,  but  at 

each  trial,  his  will  and  courage  were  becoming  greater;  he 

was  learning  to  master  himself;  and  nothing  could  induce 

him  to  fail  in  his  mission.     The  eleventh  stroke  rang  out. 
"The  hour  is  passing!"  he  exclaimed.     "It  is  time!" 
And  releasing  himself  resolutely  from  Mytyl's  arms,  he 

turned  the  diamond  .  .  . 
A  moment  of  terrible  silence  followed  for  the  poor  little 

children.     Then  they  saw  the  crosses  totter,  the  mounds 

open,  the  slabs  rise  up  .  .  . 

Mytyl  hid  her  face  against  Tyltyl's  chest : 

"They're  coming  out!"  she  cried.     "They're  there!  .  .  . 

They're  there!  .  .  ." 


The  Graveyard  133 

The  agony  was  more  than  the  plucky  little  fellow  could 
endure.  He  shut  his  eyes  and  only  kept  himself  from 
fainting  by  leaning  against  a  tree  beside  him.  He 
remained  like  that  for  a  minute  that  seemed  to  him  like 
a  century,  not  daring  to  move,  not  daring  to  breathe.  Then 
he  heard  birds  singing;  a  warm  and  scented  breeze  fanned 
his  face ;  and,  on  his  hands,  on  his  neck,  he  felt  the  soft  heat 
of  the  balmy  summer  sun.  Now  quite  reassured,  but  un- 
able to  believe  in  so  great  a  miracle,  he  opened  his  eyes  and 
at  once  began  to  shout  with  happiness  and  admiration. 

From  all  the  open  tombs  came  thousands  of  splendid 
flowers.  They  spread  everywhere,  on  the  paths,  on  the 
trees,  on  the  grass;  and  they  went  up  and  up  until  it  seemed 
that  they  would  touch  the  sky.  They  were  great  full- 
blown roses,  showing  their  hearts,  wonderful  golden  hearts 
from  which  came  the  hot,  bright  rays  which  had  wrapped 
Tyltyl  in  that  summer  warmth.  Round  the  roses,  birds 
sang  and  bees  buzzed  gaily. 

"I  can't  believe  it!  It's  not  possible!"  said  Tyltyl. 
"What  has  become  of  the  tombs  and  the  stone  crosses?" 

Dazzled  and  bewildered,  the  two  children  walked  hand 
in  hand  through  the  graveyard,  of  which  not  a  trace  re- 
mained, for  there  was  nothing  but  a  wonderful  garden  on 
every  side.     They  were  as  glad  and  happy  as  could  be,  after 


134  ^-he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

their  terrible  fright.  They  had  thought  that  ugly  skeletons 
would  rise  from  the  earth  and  run  after  them,  pulling  horrid 
faces;  they  had  imagined  all  sorts  of  awful  things.  And 
now,  in  the  presence  of  the  truth,  they  saw  that  all  that 
they  had  been  told  was  a  great  big  story  and  that  Death  does 
not  exist.  They  saw  that  there  are  no  Dead  and  that  Life 
goes  on  always,  always,  but  under  fresh  forms.  The  fading 
rose  sheds  its  pollen,  which  gives  birth  to  other  roses,  and 
its  scattered  petals  scent  the  air.  The  fruits  come  when 
the  blossoms  fall  from  the  trees ;  and  the  dingy,  hairy  cater- 
pillar turns  into  a  brilliant  butterfly.  Nothing  perishes 
.  .  .  there  are  only  changes  .  .  . 

Beautiful  birds  circled  all  round  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl. 
There  were  no  blue  ones  among  them,  but  the  two  Children 
were  so  glad  of  their  discovery  that  they  asked  for  nothing 
more.     Astonished  and  delighted,  they  kept  on  repeating: 

"There  are  no  Dead !  .  ,  .  There  are  no  Dead !  .  .  ." 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    FOREST 

As  soon  as  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  were  in  bed,  Light  kissed  them 
and  faded  away  at  once,  so  as  not  to  disturb  their  sleep 
with  the  rays  that  always  streamed  from  her  beautiful 
self. 

It  must  have  been  about  midnight,  when  Tyltyl,  who  was 
dreaming  of  the  little  Blue  Children,  felt  a  soft  velvet  paw 
pass  to  and  fro  over  his  face.  He  was  surprised  and  sat  up 
in  bed  in  a  bit  of  a  fright;  but  he  was  soon  reassured  when 
he  saw  his  friend  Tylette's  glowing  eyes  glittering  in  the 
dark. 

"Hush!"  said  the  Cat  in  his  ear.  "Hush!  Don't  wake 
anybody.  If  we  can  arrange  to  slip  out  without  being  seen, 
we  shall  catch  the  Blue  Bird  to-night.  I  have  risked  my 
life,  O  my  dearest  master,  in  preparing  a  plan  which  will 
certainly  lead  us  to  victory!" 

"But,"  said  the  boy,  kissing  Tylette,  "Light  would  be  so 
glad  to  help  us  .  .  .  and  besides  I  should  be  ashamed  to 
disobey  her  .  .  ." 

137 


138  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"If  you  tell  her,"  said  the  Cat,  sharply,  "all  is  lost,  believe 
ine.     Do  as  I  say;  and  the  day  is  ours." 

As  she  spoke  these  words,  she  hastened  to  dress  him  and 
also  Mytyl,  who  had  heard  a  noise  and  was  asking  to  go 
with  them. 

"You  don't  understand,"  groaned  Tyltyl.  "You  are  too 
small:  you  don't  know  what  a  wicked  thing  we  are  do- 
ing  .  .  . 

But  the  treacherous  Cat  answered  all  his  arguments,  say- 
ing that  the  reason  why  he  had  not  found  the  Blue  Bird  so 
far  was  just  the  fault  of  Light,  who  always  brought  bright- 
ness with  her.  Let  the  Children  only  go  hunting  by  them- 
selves, in  the  dark,  and  they  would  soon  find  all  the  Blue 
Birds  that  make  men's  happiness.  The  traitress  displayed 
such  cleverness  that,  before  long,  Tyltyl's  disobedience  be- 
came a  very  fine  thing  in  his  own  eyes.  Each  of  Tylette's 
words  provided  a  good  excuse  for  his  action  or  adorned  it 
with  a  generous  thought.  He  was  too  weak  to  set  his  will 
against  trickery,  allowed  himself  to  be  persuaded  and 
walked  out  of  the  temple  with  a  firm  and  cheerful  step. 
Poor  little  fellow :  if  he  could  only  have  foreseen  the  terrible 
trap  that  awaited  him! 

Our  three  companions  set  out  across  the  fields  in  the 
white  light  of  the  moon.     The  Cat  seemed  greatly  excited, 


The  Forest  139 

did  nothing  but  talk  and  went  so  fast  that  the  children  were 
hardly  able  to  keep  up  with  her : 

"This  time,"  she  declared,  "we  shall  have  the  Blue  Bird, 
I  am  sure  of  it!  I  asked  all  the  Trees  in  the  very  oldest 
forest;  they  know  him,  because  he  hides  among  them. 
Then,  in  order  to  have  everybody  there,  I  sent  the  Rabbit 
to  beat  the  assembly  and  call  the  principal  Animals  in 
the  country." 

They  reached  the  edge  of  the  dark  forest  in  an  hour's  time. 
Then,  at  a  turn  in  the  road,  they  saw,  in  the  distance,  some 
one  who  seemed  to  be  hurrying  towards  them.  Tylette 
arched  her  back:  she  felt  that  it  was  her  old  time  enemy. 
She  quivered  with  rage:  was  he  once  more  going  to  thwart 
her  plans?  Had  he  guessed  her  secret?  Was  he  coming, 
at  the  last  moment,  to  save  the  Children's  lives? 

She  leaned  over  to  Tyltyl  and  whispered  to  him,  in  hei 
most  honeyed  voice: 

"I  am  sorry  to  say  it  is  our  worthy  friend  the  Dog.  It  is 
a  thousand  pities,  because  his  presence  will  make  us  fail  in 
our  object.  He  is  on  the  worst  of  terms  with  everybody, 
even  the  Trees.     Do  tell  him  to  go  back!" 

"Go  away,  you  ugly  thing!"  said  Tyltyl,  shaking  his  fist 
at  the  Dog. 

Dear  old  faithful  Tylo,  who  had  come  because  he  sus- 


140  tfhe  Children's  Blue  Bird 

pected  the  Cat's  plans,  was  much  hurt  by  these  hard  words. 
He  was  ready  to  cry,  was  still  out  of  breath  from  running 
and  could  think  of  nothing  to  say. 

"Go  away,  I  tell  you!"  said  Tyltyl  again.  "We  don't 
want  you  here  and  there's  an  end  of  it  .  .  .  You're  a  nui- 
sance, there!  .  .  ." 

The  Dog  was  an  obedient  animal  and,  at  any  other  time, 
he  would  have  gone;  but  his  affection  told  him  what  a 
serious  business  it  was  and  he  stood  stock  still. 

"Do  you  allow  this  disobedience?"  said  the  Cat  to  Tyltyl, 
in  a  whisper.     "Hit  him  with  your  stick." 

Tyltyl  beat  the  Dog,  as  the  Cat  suggested : 

"There,  that  will  teach  you  to  be  more  obedient!"  he  said. 

The  poor  Dog  howled  at  receiving  the  blows;  but  there 
was  no  limit  to  his  self-sacrifice.  He  went  up  to  his  young 
master  pluckily  and,  taking  him  in  his  arms,  cried : 

"I  must  kiss  you  now  you've  beaten  me !" 

Tyltyl,  who  was  a  good-hearted  little  fellow,  did  not 
know  what  to  do;  and  the  Cat  swore  between  her  teeth  like 
a  wild  beast.  Fortunately,  dear  little  Mytyl  interfered  on 
our  friend's  behalf : 

"No,  no;  I  want  him  to  stay,"  she  pleaded.  "I'm  fright- 
ened when  Tylo's  not  with  us." 

Time  was  short  and  they  had  to  come  to  a  decision. 


T^he  Forest  141 

"I'll  find  some  other  way  to  get  rid  of  the  idiot!"  thought 
the  Cat.  And,  turning  to  the  Dog,  she  said,  in  her  most  gra- 
cious manner,  "We  shall  be  so  pleased  if  you  will  join  us!" 

As  they  entered  the  great  forest,  the  Children  stuck  close 
together,  with  the  Cat  and  the  Dog  on  either  side  of  them. 
They  were  awed  by  the  silence  and  the  darkness  and  they 
felt  much  relieved  when  the  Cat  exclaimed : 

"Here  we  are!     Turn  the  diamond!" 

Then  the  light  spread  around  them  and  showed  them  a 
wonderful  sight.  They  were  standing  in  the  middle  of  a 
large  round  space  in  the  heart  of  the  forest,  where  all  the 
old,  old  Trees  seemed  to  reach  up  to  the  sky.  Wide 
avenues  formed  a  white  star  amidst  the  dark  green  of  the 
wood.  Everything  was  peaceful  and  still;  but  suddenly  a 
strange  shiver  ran  through  the  foliage;  the  branches  moved 
and  stretched  like  human  arms;  the  roots  raised  the  earth 
that  covered  them,  came  together,  took  the  shapes  of  legs 
and  feet  and  stood  on  the  ground ;  a  tremendous  crash  rang 
through  the  air;  the  trunks  of  the  Trees  burst  open  and  each 
of  them  let  out  its  soul,  which  made  its  appearance  like  a 
funny  human  figure. 

Some  stepped  slowly  from  their  trunks;  others  came  out 
with  a  jump;  and  all  of  them  gathered  inquisitively  round 
our  friends. 


142      »  T^  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

The  talkative  Poplar  began  to  chatter  like  a  magpie : 

"Little  Men!  We  shall  be  able  to  talk  to  them!  We 
have  done  with  silence!  .  .  .  Where  do  they  come  from4? 
.  .  .  Who  are  they?" 

And  so  he  rattled  on. 

The  Lime-tree,  who  was  a  jolly,  fat  fellow,  came  up 
calmly,  smoking  his  pipe;  the  conceited  and  dandified 
Chestnut-tree  screwed  his  glass  into  his  eye  to  stare  at  the 
Children.  He  wore  a  coat  of  green  silk  embroidered  with 
pink  and  white  flowers.  He  thought  the  little  ones  too 
poor-looking  and  turned  away  in  derision. 

"He  thinks  he's  everybody,  since  he  has  taken  to  living 
in  town!  He  despises  us!"  sneered  the  Poplar,  who  was 
jealous  of  him. 

"Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear!"  wept  the  Willow,  a  wretched  little 
stunted  fellow,  who  came  clattering  along  in  a  pair  of 
wooden  shoes  too  big  for  him.  "They  have  come  to  cut  off 
my  head  and  arms  for  firewood!" 

Tyltyl  could  not  believe  his  eyes.  He  never  stopped 
asking  the  Cat  questions : 

"Who's  this?  .  .  .  Who's  that?  .  .  ." 

And  Tylette  introduced  the  soul  of  each  Tree  to  him. 

There  was  the  Elm,  who  was  a  sort  of  short-winded, 
paunchy,  crabby  gnome;  the  Beech,  an  elegant,  sprightly 


The  Forest  143 

person ;  the  Birch,  who  looked  like  the  ghosts  in  the  Palace 
of  Night,  with  his  white  flowing  garments  and  his  restless 
gestures.  The  tallest  figure  was  the  Fir-tree :  Tyltyl  found 
it  very  difficult  to  see  his  face  perched  right  at  the  top  of 
his  long,  thin  body;  but  he  looked  gentle  and  sad,  whereas 
the  Cypress,  who  stood  near  him,  dressed  all  in  black, 
frightened  Tyltyl  terribly. 

However,  so  far  nothing  very  dreadful  had  happened. 
The  Trees,  delighted  at  being  able  to  talk,  were  all  chatter- 
ing together;  and  our  young  friend  was  simply  going  to  ask 
them  where  the  Blue  Bird  was  hidden,  when,  all  of  a  sud- 
den, silence  reigned.  The  Trees  bowed  respectfully  and 
stood  aside  to  make  way  for  an  immensely  old  Tree,  dressed 
in  a  long  gown  embroidered  with  moss  and  lichen.  He 
leaned  with  one  hand  on  a  stick  and  with  the  other  on  a 
young  Oak  Sapling  who  acted  as  his  guide,  for  the  Old  Oak 
was  blind.     His  long  white  beard  streamed  in  the  wind. 

"It's  the  King!"  said  Tyltyl  to  himself,  when  he  saw  his 
mistletoe  crown.     "I  will  ask  him  the  secret  of  the  forest." 

And  he  was  just  going  up  to  him,  when  he  stopped,  seized 
with  surprise  and  joy:  there  sat  the  Blue  Bird  before  him, 
perched  on  the  old  Oak's  shoulder. 

"He  has  the  Blue  Bird!"  cried  the  boy,  gleefully. 
"Quick!     Quick!     Give  him  to  me !" 


144  ^*he  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

"Silence!  Hold  your  tongue!"  said  the  greatly  shocked 
Trees. 

"Take  off  your  hat,  Tyltyl,"  said  the  Cat.  "It's  the 
Oak!" 

The  poor  Child  at  once  obeyed  with  a  smile ;  he  did  not 
understand  the  danger  that  threatened  him  and  he  did  not 
hesitate  to  answer,  "Yes,  Sir,"  when  the  Oak  asked  him  if  he 
was  Tyl  the  woodcutter's  son. 

Then  the  Oak,  trembling  with  rage,  began  to  lay  a  terrible 
charge  against  Daddy  Tyl : 

"In  my  family  alone,"  he  said,  "your  father  has  put  to 
death  six  hundred  of  my  sons,  four  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  uncles  and  aunts,  twelve  hundred  cousins  of  both  sexes, 
three  hundred  and  eighty  daughters-in-law  and  twelve 
thousand  great-grandsons !" 

No  doubt  his  anger  made  him  exaggerate  a  little;  but 
Tyltyl  listened  without  protest  and  said,  very  politely : 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Sir,  for  disturbing  you  .  .  .  The  Cat 
said  that  you  would  tell  us  where  the  Blue  Bird  is." 

The  Oak  was  too  old  not  to  know  all  there  was  to  know 
about  Men  and  Animals.  He  smiled  in  his  beard  when  he 
guessed  the  trap  laid  by  the  Cat  and  he  felt  very  glad  at  it, 
for  he  had  long  wished  to  revenge  the  whole  forest  for  the 
slavery  to  which  Man  had  subjected  it. 


'The  Forest  145 

"It's  for  the  Fairy  Berylune's  little  girl,  who  is  very  ill," 
the  boy  continued. 

"Enough!"  said  the  Oak,  silencing  him.  "I  do  not  hear 
the  Animals  .  .  .  Where  are  they*?  .  .  .  All  this  concerns 
them  as  much  as  us.  .  .  .  We,  the  Trees,  must  not  assume 
the  responsibility  alone  for  the  grave  measures  that  have 
become  necessary." 

"Here  they  come!"  said  the  Fir-tree,  looking  over  the  top 
of  the  other  Trees.  "They  are  following  the  Rabbit  .  .  . 
I  can  see  the  souls  of  the  Horse,  the  Bull,  the  Ox,  the 
Cow,  the  Wolf,  the  Sheep,  the  Pig,  the  Goat,  and  the 
Bear.  .  .  ." 

All  the  Animals  now  arrived.  They  walked  on  their 
hind-legs  and  were  dressed  like  human  beings.  They 
solemnly  took  up  their  positions  in  a  circle  among  the  Trees, 
all  except  the  frivolous  Goat,  who  began  to  skip  down  the 
avenues,  and  the  Pig,  who  hoped  to  find  some  glorious 
truffles  among  the  roots  that  had  newly  left  the  ground. 

"Are  all  here  present*?"  asked  the  Oak. 

"The  Hen  could  not  leave  her  eggs,"  said  the  Rabbit,  "the 
Hare  was  out  for  a  run,  the  Stag  has  pains  in  his  horns  and 
his  corns,  the  Fox  is  ill — here  is  the  doctor's  certificate — 
the  Goose  did  not  understand  and  the  Turkey  flew  into  a 
passion.  .  .  ." 


146  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Look!"  whispered  Tyltyl  to  Mytyl.  "Aren't  they 
funny?  They  are  just  like  the  rich  children's  fine  toys  in 
the  windows  at  Christmas-time." 

The  Rabbit  especially  made  them  laugh,  with  his  cocked 
hat  over  his  big  ears,  his  blue,  embroidered  coat  and  his  drum 
slung  in  front  of  him. 

Meanwhile,  the  Oak  was  explaining  the  situation  to  his 
brothers  the  Trees  and  to  the  Animals.  Treacherous  Ty- 
lette  had  been  quite  right  in  reckoning  on  their  hatred. 

"The  child  you  see  before  you,"  said  the  Oak,  "thanks  to 
a  talisman  stolen  from  the  powers  of  Earth,  is  able  to  take 
possession  of  our  Blue  Bird  and  thus  to  snatch  from  us  the 
secret  which  we  have  kept  since  the  origin  of  life.  .  .  . 
Now  we  know  enough  of  Man  to  entertain  no  doubt  as  to 
the  fate  which  he  reserves  for  us,  once  he  is  in  possession  of 
this  secret.  .  .  .  Any  hesitation  would  be  both  foolish  and 
criminal  ...  It  is  a  serious  moment;  the  child  must  be 
done  away  with  before  it  is  too  late.  .  .  ." 

"What  is  he  saying?"  asked  Tyltyl,  who  could  not  make 
out  what  the  old  Tree  was  driving  at. 

The  Dog  was  prowling  round  the  Oak  and  now  showed 
his  fangs: 

"Do  you  see  my  teeth,  you  old  cripple?"  he  growled. 

"He  is  insulting  the  Oak!"  said  the  Beech  indignantly. 


The  Forest  147 

''Drive  him  out!"  shouted  the  Oak,  angrily.  "He's  a 
traitor!" 

"What  did  I  tell  you?'  whispered  the  Cat  to  Tyltyl.  "I 
will  arrange  things  .  .  .  But  send  him  away." 

"Will  you  be  off!"  said  Tyltyl  to  the  Dog. 

"Do  let  me  worry  the  gouty  old  beggar's  moss  slippers!" 
begged  Tylo. 

Tyltyl  tried  in  vain  to  prevent  him.  The  rage  of  Tylo, 
who  understood  the  danger,  knew  no  bounds;  and  he  would 
have  succeeded  in  saving  his  master,  if  the  Cat  had  not 
thought  of  calling  in  the  Ivy,  who  till  then  had  kept  his 
distance.  The  Dog  pranced  about  like  a  madman,  abusing 
everybody.     He  railed  at  the  Ivy: 

"Come  on,  if  you  dare,  you  old  ball  of  twine,  you !" 

The  onlookers  growled;  the  Oak  was  pale  with  fury  at 
seeing  his  authority  denied;  the  Trees  and  the  Animals  were 
indignant,  but,  as  they  were  cowards,  not  one  of  them  dared 
protest;  and  the  Dog  would  have  settled  all  of  them,  if  he 
had  gone  on  with  his  rebellion.  But  Tyltyl  threatened  him 
harshly;  and,  suddenly  yielding  to  his  docile  instincts,  Tylo 
lay  down  at  his  master's  feet.  Thus  it  is  that  our  finest  vir- 
tues are  treated  as  faults,  when  we  exercise  them  without 
discrimination. 

From  that  moment,  the  Children  were  lost.     The  Ivy 


!48  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

gagged  and  bound  the  poor  Dog,  who  was  then  taken  be- 
hind the  Chestnutt-tree  and  tied  to  his  biggest  root. 

"Now,"  cried  the  Oak,  in  a  voice  of  thunder,  "we  can 
take  counsel  quietly  .  .  .  This  is  the  first  time  that  it  is 
given  us  to  judge  Man!  I  do  not  think  that,  after  the 
monstrous  injustice  which  we  have  suffered,  there  can  re- 
main  the   least   doubt   as   to   the    sentence    that   awaits 

him.  .  .  ." 

One  cry  rang  from  every  throat : 

"Death!     Death!     Death!" 

The  poor  Children  did  not  at  first  understand  their  doom, 
for  the  Trees  and  Animals,  who  were  more  accustomed  to 
talking  their  own  special  language,  did  not  speak  very  dis- 
tinctly; and,  besides,  the  innocent  Children  could  never 
imagine  such  cruelty ! 

"What  is  the  matter  with  them4?"  asked  the  boy.  "Are 
they  displeased4?" 

"Don't  be  alarmed,"  said  the  Cat.  "They  are  a  little  an- 
noyed because  Spring  is  late.  .  .  ." 

And  she  went  on  talking  into  Tyltyl's  ear,  to  divert  his 
attention  from  what  was  happening. 

While  the  trusting  lad  was  listening  to  her  fibs,  the  others 
were  discussing  which  form  of  execution  would  be  the  most 
practical  and  the  least  dangerous.     The  Bull  suggested  a 


The  Forest  149 

good  butt  with  the  horns;  the  Beech  offered  his  highest 
branch  to  hang  the  little  Children  on;  and  the  Ivy  was 
already  preparing  a  slip-knot !  The  Fir-tree  was  willing  to 
give  the  four  planks  for  the  coffin  and  the  Cypress  the  per- 
petual grant  of  a  tomb. 

"By  far  the  simplest  way,"  whispered  the  Willow, 
"would  be  to  drown  them  in  one  of  my  rivers." 

And  the  Pig  grunted  between  his  teeth : 

"In  my  opinion,  the  great  thing  would  be  to  eat  the  little 
girl.  .  .  .  She  ought  to  be  very  tender.  .  .  ." 

"Silence!"  roared  the  Oak.  "What  we  have  to  decide  is 
which  of  us  shall  have  the  honour  of  striking  the  first  blow !" 

"That  honour  falls  to  you,  our  King!"  said  the  Fir-tree. 

"Alas,  I  am  too  old!"  replied  the  Oak.  "I  am  blind  and 
infirm!  To  you,  my  evergreen  brother,  be  the  glory,  in  my 
place,  of  striking  the  decisive  blow  that  shall  set  us  free." 

But  the  Fir-tree  declined  the  honour  on  the  pretext  that 
he  was  already  to  have  the  pleasure  of  burying  the  two  vic- 
tims and  that  he  was  afraid  of  rousing  jealousy.  He  sug- 
gested the  Beech,  as  owning  the  best  club. 

"It  is  out  of  the  question,"  said  the  Beech.  "You  know  I 
am  worm-eaten !     Ask  the  Elm  and  the  Cypress." 

Thereupon  the  Elm  began  to  moan  and  groan:  a  mole 
had  twisted  his  great  toe  the  night  before  and  he  could 


150  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

hardly  stand  upright;  and  the  Cypress  excused  himself  and 
so  did  the  Poplar,  who  declared  that  he  was  ill  and  shivering 
with  fever.     Then  the  Oak's  indignation  flared  up: 

"You  are  afraid  of  Man!"  he  exclaimed.  "Even  those 
unprotected  and  unarmed  little  Children  inspire  you  with 
terror!  .  .  .  Well,  I  shall  go  forth  alone,  old  and  shaky 
and  blind  as  I  am,  against  the  hereditary  enemy!  .  «  . 
Where  is  he?  .  .  ." 

And  groping^his  way  with  his  stick,  he  moved  towards 
Tyltyl,  growling  as  he  went. 

Our  poor  little  friend  had  been  very  much  afraid  during 
the  last  few  minutes.  The  Cat  had  left  him  suddenly,  say- 
ing that  she  wanted  to  smooth  down  the  excitement,  and 
had  not  come  back.  Mytyl  nestled  trembling  against  him; 
and  he  felt  very  lonely,  very  unhappy  among  those  dread- 
ful people  whose  anger  he  was  beginning  to  notice.  When 
he  saw  the  Oak  marching  on  him  with  a  threatening  air,  he 
drew  his  pocket-knife  and  defied  him  like  a  man: 

"Is  it  I  he's  after,  that  old  one,  with  his  big  stick?"  he 
cried. 

But,  at  the  sight  of  the  knife,  Man's  irresistible  weapon, 
all  the  Trees  shook  with  fright  and  rushed  at  the  Oak  to 
hold  him  back.  There  was  a  struggle;  and  the  old  King, 
conquered  by  the  weight  of  years,  threw  away  his  stick: 


'The  Forest  151 

"Shame  on  us !"  he  shouted.  "Shame  on  us !  Let  the  An- 
imals  deliver  us !   .  .  ." 

The  Animals  were  only  waiting  for  this !  All  wanted  to 
be  revenged  together.  Fortunately,  their  very  eagerness 
caused  a  scrimmage  which  delayed  the  murder  of  the  dear 
little  ones. 

Mytyl  uttered  piercing  screams. 

"Don't  be  afraid,"  said  Tyltyl,  doing  his  best  to  protect 
her.     "I  have  my  knife." 

"The  little  chap  means  to  die  game!"  said  the  Cock. 

"That's  the  one  I  shall  eat  first,"  said  the  Pig,  eyeing 
Mytyl  greedily. 

"What  have  I  done  to  all  of  you?"  asked  Tyltyl. 

"Nothing  at  all,  my  little  man,"  said  the  Sheep.  "Eaten 
my  little  brother,  my  two  sisters,  my  three  uncles,  my  aunt, 
my  grandpapa  and  my  grandmamma.  .  .  .  Wait,  wait, 
when  you're  down,  you  shall  see  that  I  have  teeth  also.  .  ." 

And  so  the  Sheep  and  the  Horse,  who  were  the  great- 
est cowards,  waited  for  the  little  fellow  to  be  knocked 
down  before  they  dared  take  their  share  in  the  spoil. 

While  they  were  talking,  the  Wolf  and  the  Bear  treacher- 
ously attacked  Tyltyl  from  behind  and  pushed  him  over. 
It  was  an  awful  moment.  All  the  Animals,  seeing  him  on 
the  ground,  tried  to  get  at  him.     The  boy  raised  himself  to 


152  'The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

one  knee  and  brandished  his  knife.  Mytyl  uttered  yells 
of  distress;  and,  to  crown  all,  it  suddenly  became  dark. 

Tyltyl  called  wildly  for  assistance: 

"Help!  Help!  .  .  .  Tylo!  Tylo!  .  .  .  To  the  rescue ! 
,  .  .  Where  is  Tylette?  .  .  .  Come!    Come!   .  .  ." 

The  Cat's  voice  was  heard  in  the  distance,  where  she  was 
craftily  keeping  out  of  sight : 

"I  can't  come !"  she  whined.     "I'm  wounded !" 

All  this  time,  plucky  little  Tyltyl  was  defending  himself 
as  best  he  could,  but  he  was  alone  against  all  of  them,  felt 
that  he  was  going  to  be  killed  and,  in  a  faltering  voice, 
cried  once  more : 

"Help!  .  .  .  Tylo!  Tylo!  .  .  .  I  can't  hold  out!  .  .  ( 
There  are  too  many  of  them!  .  .  .  The  Bear!  .  .  .  The 
Pig!  The  Wolf!  The  Fir-tree!  The  Beech!  .  .  . 
Tylo!     Tyl6!     Tylo!  .  .  ." 

Then  the  Dog  came  leaping  along,  dragging  his  broken 
bonds  and  elbowing  his  way  through  the  Trees  and  Animals 
and  flung  himself  before  his  master,  whom  he  defended 
furiously : 

"Here,  my  little  god!  Don't  be  afraid!  Have  at  them! 
I  know  how  to  use  my  teeth!" 

All  the  Trees  and  Animals  raised  a  loud  outcry : 

"Renegade!  .  .  .  Idiot!  .  .  .  Traitor!  .  .  .  Felon!  .  .  • 


tfhe  Forest  153 

Simpleton!  .  .  .  Sneak!  .  .  .  Leave  him!  .  .  .  He's  a  dead 
man !  .  .  .  Come  over  to  us !  .  .  ." 

The  Dog  fought  on : 

"Never!  Never!  ...  I  alone  against  all  of  you!  .  .  . 
Never !  Never !  .  .  .  True  to  the  gods,  to  the  best,  to  the 
greatest!  .  .  .  Take  care,  my  little  master,  here's  the  Bear! 
.  .  .  Look  out  for  the  Bull!" 

Tyltyl  vainly  tried  to  defend  himself: 

"I'm  done  for,  Tylo !  It  was  a  blow  from  the  Elm !  My 
hand's  bleeding!"  And  he  dropped  to  the  ground.  "No, 
I  can  hold  out  no  longer!" 

"They  are  coming!"  said  the  Dog.  "I  hear  somebody! 
.  .  .  We  are  saved!  It  is  Light!  .  .  .  Saved!  Saved! 
.  .  .  See,  they're  afraid,  they're  retreating!  .  .  .  Saved, 
my  little  king!   .  .  ." 

And,  sure  enough,  Light  was  coming  towards  them;  and 
with  her  the  dawn  rose  over  the  forest,  which  became  light 
as  day. 

"What  is  it?  .  .  .  What  has  happened?"  she  asked,  quite 
alarmed  at  the  sight  of  the  little  ones  and  their  dear  Tylo 
covered  with  wounds  and  bruises.  "Why,  my  poor  boy, 
didn't  you  know?     Turn  the  diamond  quickly!" 

Tyltyl  hastened  to  obey;  and  immediately  the  souls  of 
all  the  Trees  rushed  back  into  their  trunks,  which  closed 


154  y^e  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

upon  them.  The  souls  of  the  Animals  also  disappeared; 
and  there  was  nothing  to  be  seen  but  a  cow  and  a  sheep 
browsing  peacefully  in  the  distance.  The  forest  became 
harmless  once  more;  and  Tyltyl  looked  around  him  in 
amazement : 

"No  matter,"  he  said,  "but  for  the  Dog  .  .• .  and  if  I 
hadn't  had  my  knife!   .  .  ." 

Light  thought  that  he  had  been  punished  enough  and  did 
not  scold  him.  Besides,  she  was  very  much  upset  by  the 
horrible  danger  which  he  had  run. 

Tyltyl,  Mytyl  and  the  Dog,  glad  to  meet  again  safe  and 
sound,  exchanged  wild  kisses.  They  laughingly  counted 
their  wounds,  which  were  not  very  serious. 

Tylette  was  the  only  one  to  make  a  fuss: 

"The  Dog's  broken  my  paw!"  she  mewed. 

Tylo  felt  as  if  he  could  have  made  a  mouthful  of  her: 

"Never  mind!"  he  said.     "It'll  keep!" 

"Leave  her  alone,  will  you,  you  ugly  beast?"  said  Mytyl. 

Our  friends  went  back  to  the  Temple  of  Light  to  resl 
after  their  adventure.  Tyltyl,  repenting  of  his  disobedi« 
ence,  dared  not  even  mention  the  Blue  Bird  of  which  he  had 
caught  a  glimpse;  and  Light  said  to  the  Children,  gently: 

"Let  this  teach  you,  dears,  that  Man  is  all  alone  against 
all  in  this  world.     Never  forget  that." 


r 


i 


~1 


u 


W    A    T    E 
G      O 


A  regular  waterfall  of  tears   came  gushing   from   her  eyes, 
flooding  all  around  her 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  LEAVE-TAKING 

Weeks  and  months  had  passed  since  the  children's  depar- 
ture on  their  journey;  and  the  hour  of  separation  was  at 
hand.  Light  had  been  very  sad  lately;  she  had  counted  the 
days  in  sorrow,  without  a  word  to  the  Animals  and  Things, 
who  had  no  idea  of  the  misfortune  that  threatened  them. 

On  the  day  when  we  see  them  for  the  last  time,  they 
were  all  out  in  the  gardens  of  the  temple.  Light  stood 
watching  them  from  a  marble  terrace,  with  Tyltyl  and 
Mytyl  sleeping  by  her  side.  Much  had  happened  in  the 
past  twelve  months;  but  the  life  of  the  Animals  and  Things, 
which  had  no  intelligence  to  guide  it,  had  made  no  progress, 
on  the  contrary.  Bread  had  eaten  so  much  that  he  was  now 
not  able  to  walk:  Milk,  devoted  as  ever,  dragged  him  along 
in  a  Bath  chair.  Fire's  nasty  temper  had  made  him  quarrel 
with  everybody  and  he  had  become  very  lonely  and  un* 
happy  in  consequence.  Water,  who  had  no  will  of  her  own, 
had  ended  by  yielding  to  Sugar's  sweet  entreaties:  the)7 
were  now  married;  and  Sugar  presented  a  most  piteous 

157 


158  ^he  Children's  Blue  Bird 

sight.  The  poor  fellow  was  reduced  to  a  shadow  of  his 
former  self,  shrank  visibly  day  by  day  and  was  sillier  than 
ever,  while  Water,  in  marrying,  had  lost  her  principal 
charm,  her  simplicity.  The  Cat  had  remained  the  liar  that 
she  always  was;  and  our  dear  friend  Tylo  had  never  been 
able  to  overcome  his  hatred  for  her. 

"Poor  things!"  thought  Light,  with  a  sigh.  "They  have 
not  gained  much  by  receiving  the  benefit  of  life!  They 
have  travelled  and  seen  nothing  of  all  the  wonders  that  sur- 
rounded them  in  my  peaceful  temple ;  they  were  either  quar- 
relling with  one  another  or  over-eating  themselves  until 
they  fell  ill.  They  were  too  foolish  to  enjoy  their  happi- 
ness and  they  will  recognize  it  for  the  first  time  presently, 
when  they  are  about  to  lose  it.  .  .  ." 

At  that  moment,  a  pretty  dove,  with  silver  wings,  alighted 
on  her  knees.  It  wore  an  emerald  collar  round  its  neck,  with 
a  note  fastened  to  the  clasp.  The  dove  was  the  Fairy  Bery- 
lune's  messenger.  Light  opened  the  letter  and  read  these 
few  words: 

"Remember  that  the  year  is  over." 

Then  Light  stood  up,  waved  her  wand  and  everything 
disappeared  from  sight. 


The  Leave-Taking  159 

A  few  seconds  later,  the  whole  company  were  gathered 
together  outside  a  high  wall  with  a  small  door  in  it.  The 
first  rays  of  the  dawn  were  gilding  the  tree-tops.  Tyltyl 
and  Mytyl,  whom  Light  was  fondly  supporting  with  her 
arms,  woke  up,  rubbed  their  eyes  and  looked  around  them 
in  astonishment. 

"What?"  said  Light  to  Tyltyl.  "Don't  you  know  that 
wall  and  that  little  door?" 

The  sleepy  boy  shook  his  head :  he  remembered  nothing. 
Then  Light  assisted  his  memory: 

"The  wall,"  she  said,  "surrounds  a  house  which  we  left 
one  evening  just  a  year  ago  to-day.  .  .  ." 

"Just  a  year  ago?  .  .  .  Why,  then  .  .  ."  And,  clapping 
his  hands  with  glee,  Tyltyl  ran  to  the  door.  "We  must  be 
near  Mummy !  .  .  .  I  want  to  kiss  her  at  once,  at  once,  at 
once! 

But  Light  stopped  him.  It  was  too  early,  she  said: 
Mummy  and  Daddy  were  still  asleep  and  he  must  not  wake 
them  with  a  start. 

"Besides,"  she  added,  "the  door  will  not  open  till  the 
hour  strikes." 

"What  hour?"  asked  the  boy. 

"The  hour  of  separation,"  Light  answered,  sadly. 


160  ^the  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

''What!"  said  Tyltyl,  in  great  distress.  "Are  you  leav- 
ing us?" 

"I  must,"  said  Light.  "The  year  is  past.  The  Fairy  will 
come  back  and  ask  you  for  the  Blue  Bird." 

"But  I  haven't  got  the  Blue  Bird!"  cried  Tyltyl.  "The 
one  of  the  Land  of  Memory  turned  quite  black,  the  one  of 
the  Future  flew  away,  the  Night's  are  dead,  those  in  the 
Graveyard  were  not  blue  and  I  cOuld  not  catch  the  one  in 
the  Forest!  .  .  .  Will  the  Fairy  be  angry?  .  .  .  What 
will  she  say?  .  .  ." 

"Never  mind,  dear,"  said  Light.  "You  did  your  best. 
And,  though  you  did  not  find  the  Blue  Bird,  you  deserved 
to  do  so,  for  the  good-will,  pluck  and  courage  which  you 
showed." 

Light's  face  beamed  with  happiness  as  she  spoke  these 
words,  for  she  knew  that  to  deserve  to  find  the  Blue  Bird 
was  very  much  the  same  thing  as  finding  it;  but  she  was 
not  allowed  to  say  this,  for  it  was  a  beautiful  mystery, 
which  Tyltyl  had  to  solve  for  himself.  She  turned  to  the 
Animals  and  Things,  who  stood  weeping  in  a  corner,  and 
told  them  to  come  and  kiss  the  Children. 

Bread  at  once  put  down  the  cage  at  Tyltyl's  feet  and  be 
gan  to  make  a  speech: 

"In  the  name  of  all,  I  crave  permission  .  .  .*' 


The  Leave-Taking  16). 

"You  sha'n't  have  mine!"  cried  Fire. 

"Order!"  cried  Water. 

"We  still  have  tongues  of  our  own!"  roared  Fire. 

"Yes!  Yes!"  screamed  Sugar,  who,  knowing  that  his 
end  was  at  hand,  kept  kissing  Water  and  melting  before 
the  others'  eyes. 

Poor  Bread  in  vain  tried  to  make  his  voice  heard  above  the 
din.  Light  had  to  interfere  and  command  silence.  Then 
Bread  spoke  his  last  words : 

"I  am  leaving  you,"  he  said,  between  his  sobs.  "I  am 
leaving  you,  my  dear  Children,  and  you  will  no  longer  see 
me  in  my  living  form.  .  .  .  Your  eyes  are  about  to  close 
to  the  invisible  life  of  Things;  but  I  shall  be  always  there, 
in  the  bread-pan,  on  the  shelf,  on  the  table,  beside  the  soup, 
I  who  am,  if  I  may  say  so,  the  most  faithful  companion,  the 
oldest  friend  of  Man.  .  .  ." 

"Well,  and  what  about  me?"  shouted  Fire,  angrily. 

"Silence!"  said  Light.  "The  hour  is  passing.  ...  Be 
quick  and  say  good-bye  to  the  Children.  .  .  ." 

Fire  rushed  forward,  took  hold  of  the  Children,  one  after 
the  other,  and  kissed  them  so  violently  that  they  screamed 
with  pain : 

"Oh!     Oh!  .  .  .  He's  burning  me!  .  .  ." 

"Oh!    Oh!  .  .  .  He's  scorched  my  nose !  ,  .  ." 


162  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Let  me  kiss  the  place  and  make  it  well,"  said  Water, 
going  up  to  the  children  gently. 

This  gave  Fire  his  chance : 

"Take  care,"  he  said,  "you'll  get  wet." 

"I  am  loving  and  gentle,"  said  Water.  "I  am  kind  to 
human  beings.  .  .  ." 

"What  about  those  you  drown4?"  asked  Fire. 

But  Water  pretended  not  to  hear: 

"Love  the  wells,  listen  to  the  brooks,"  she  said.  "I  shall 
always  be  there.  When  you  sit  down  in  the  evening,  be- 
side the  springs,  try  to  understand  what  they  are  trying 
to  say.  .  .  ." 

Then  she  had  to  break  off,  for  a  regular  waterfall  of  tears 
came  gushing  from  her  eyes,  flooding  all  around  her.  How- 
ever, she  resumed: 

"Think  of  me  when  you  see  the  water-bottle.  .  .  .  You 
will  find  me  also  in  the  ewer,  the  watering-can,  the  cistern 
and  the  tap.  .  .  ," 

Then  Sugar  came  up,  with  a  limping  walk,  for  he  could 
hardly  stand  on  his  feet.  He  uttered  a  few  words  of  sor- 
row, in  an  affected  voice  and  then  stopped,  for  tears,  he 
said,  were  not  in  harmony  with  his  temperament. 

"Humbug!"  cried  Bread. 

"Sugar-plum!     Lollipop!     Caramel !"  yelped  Fire. 


L 


J 


Closely  pursued  by  the  Dog,   who  overwhelmed   her  with 
bites,  blows  and  kicks 


The  Leave-Taking  163 

And  all  began  to  laugh,  except  the  two  children,  who 
were  very  sad : 

"Where  are  Tylette  and  Tylo  gone  to?"  asked  our  hero. 

At  that  moment,  the  Cat  came  running  up,  in  a  terrible 
state :  her  hair  was  on  end  and  dishevelled,  her  clothes  were 
torn  and  she  was  holding  a  handkerchief  to  her  cheek,  as 
though  she  had  the  tooth-ache.  She  uttered  terrible  groans 
and  was  closely  pursued  by  the  Dog,  who  overwhelmed  her 
with  bites,  blows  and  kicks.  The  others  rushed  in  between 
them  to  separate  them,  but  the  two  enemies  continued  to 
insult  and  glare  at  each  other.  The  Cat  accused  the  Dog 
of  pulling  her  tail  and  putting  tin  tacks  in  her  food  and 
beating  her.  The  Dog  simply  growled  and  denied  none  of 
his  actions: 

"You've  had  some,"  he  kept  saying,  "you've  had  some 
and  you're  going  to  have  some  more!" 

But,  suddenly,  he  stopped  and,  as  he  was  panting  with 
excitement,  it  could  be  seen  that  his  tongue  turned  quite 
white :  Light  had  told  him  to  kiss  the  Children  for  the  last 
time. 

"For  the  last  time?"  stammered  poor  Tylo.  "Are  we  to 
part  from  these  poor  Children?" 

His  grief  was  such  that  he  was  incapable  of  understand- 
ing anything. 


164  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Yes,"  said  Light.     "The  hour  which  you  know  of  is  at 
hand.  .  .  .  We  are  going  to  return  to  silence.  .  .  ." 
Thereupon  the  Dog,  suddenly  realizing  his  misfortune, 

began  to  utter  real  howls  of  despair  and  fling  himself  upon 

J 
the  Children,  whom  he  loaded  with  mad  and  violent  ca- 
resses : 

"No!  No!"  he  cried.  "I  refuse!  .  .  .  I  refuse!  ...  I 
shall  always  talk!  .  .  .  And  I  shall  be  very  good.  .  .  . 
You  will  keep  me  with  you  and  I  shall  learn  to  read  and 
write  and  play  dominoes!  .  .  .  And  I  shall  always  be 
very  clean.  .  .  .  And  I  shall  never  steal  anything  in  the 
kitchen  again.  .  .  ." 

He  went  on  his  knees  before  the  two  Children,  sobbing 
and  entreating,  and,  when  Tyltyl,  with  his  eyes  full  of 
tears,  remained  silent,  dear  Tylo  had  a  last  magnificent 
idea:  running  up  to  the  Cat,  he  offered,  with  smiles  that 
looked  like  grins,  to  kiss  her.  Tylette,  who  did  not  possess 
his  spirit  of  self-sacrifice,  leaped  back  and  took  refuge  by 
Mytyl's  side.     Then  My tyl  said,  innocently  : 

"You,  Tylette,  are  the  only  one  that  hasn't  kissed  us 
yet." 

The  Cat  put  on  a  mincing  tone  : 

"Children,"  said  she,  "I  love  you  both  as  much  as  you  de- 
serve." 


The  Leave-taking  165 

There  was  a  pause. 

"And  now,"  said  Light,  "let  me,  in  my  turn,  give  you  a 
last  kiss.  .  .  ." 

As  she  spoke,  she  spread  her  veil  round  them  as  if  she 
would  have  wrapped  them  for  the  last  time  in  her  luminous 
might.  Then  she  gave  them  each  a  long  and  loving  kiss. 
Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  hung  on  to  her  beseechingly : 

"No,  no,  no,  Light!"  they  cried.  "Stay  here  with  us! 
.  .  .  Daddy  won't  mind.  .  .  .  We  will  tell  Mummy  how  kind 
you  have  been.  . . .  Where  will  you  go  all  alone?"  .  .  . 

"Not  very  far,  my  Children,"  said  Light.  "Over  there  to 
the  Land  of  the  Silence  of  Things." 

"No,  no,"  said  Tyltyl.     "I  won't  have  you  go.  .  .  ." 

But  Light  quieted  them  with  a  motherly  gesture  and  said 
words  to  them  which  they  never  forgot.  Long  after,  when 
they  were  a  grandfather  and  grandmother  in  their  turn, 
Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  still  remembered  them  and  used  to  repeat 
them  to  their  grandchildren. 

Here  are  Light's  touching  words : 

"Listen,  Tyltyl.  Do  not  forget,  child,  that  everything 
that  you  see  in  this  world  has  neither  beginning  nor  end.  If 
you  keep  this  thought  in  your  heart  and  let  it  grow  up  with 
you,  you  will  always,  in  all  circumstances,  know  what  to 
say,  what  to  do  and  what  to  hope  for." 


166  tfhe  Children's  Blue  Bird 

And,  when  our  two  friends  began  to  sob,  she  added,  lov- 
ingly: 

"Do  not  cry,  my  dear  little  ones.  ...  I  have  not  a  voice 
like  Water;  I  have  only  my  brightness,  which  Man  does 
not  understand.  .  .  .  But  I  watch  over  him  to  the  end  of 
his  days.  .  .  .  Never  forget  that  I  am  speaking  to  you  in 
every  spreading  moonbeam,  in  every  twinkling  star,  in 
every  dawn  that  rises,  in  every  lamp  that  is  lit,  in  every 
good  and  bright  thought  of  your  soul.  .  .  ." 

At  that  moment,  the  grandfather's  clock  in  the  cottage 
struck  eight  o'clock.  Light  stopped  for  a  moment  and  then, 
in  a  voice  that  grew  suddenly  fainter,  whispered : 

"Good-bye!  .  .  .  Good-bye!  .  .  .  The  hour  is  striking! 
.  .  .  Good-bye!" 

Her  veil  faded  away,  her  smile  became  paler,  her  eyes 
closed,  her  form  vanished  and,  through  their  tears,  the  chil- 
dren saw  nothing  but  a  thin  ray  of  light  dying  away  at  their 
feet.  Then  they  turned  to  the  others.  .  .  .  but  these  had 
disappeared.  .  .  . 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  AWAKENING 

The  grandfather's  clock  in  Tyl  the  woodcutter's  cottage 
had  struck  eight;  and  his  two  little  Children,  Tyl  tyl  and 
Mytyl,  were  still  asleep  in  their  little  beds.  Mummy  Tyl 
stood  looking  at  them,  with  her  arms  akimbo  and  her  apron 
tucked  up,  laughing  and  scolding  in  the  same  breath: 

"I  can't  let  them  go  on  sleeping  till  mid-day,"  she  said. 
"Come,  get  up,  you  little  lazybones!" 

But  it  was  no  use  shaking  them,  kissing  them  or  pulling 
the  bed-clothes  off.  them :  they  kept  on  falling  back  upon 
their  pillows,  with  their  noses  pointing  at  the  ceiling,  their 
mouths  wide  open,  their  eyes  shut  and  their  cheeks  all  pink. 

At  last,  after  receiving  a  gentle  thump  in  the  ribs,  Tyltyl 
opened  one  eye  and  murmured: 

"What?  .  .  .  Light?  .  .  .  Where  are  you?  .  .  .  No,  no, 
don't  go  away.  .  .  ." 

"Light !"  cried  Mummy  Tyl,  laughing.  "Why,  of  course, 
it's  light.  .  .  .  Has  been  for  ever  so  long!  .  .  .  What's  the 
matter  with  you?  .  .  .  You  look  quite  blinded.  .  .  ." 

169 


170  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

"Mummy!  .  .  .  Mummy!"  said  Tyltyl,  rubbing  his  eyes. 
its  you .... 

"Why,  of  course,  it's  I!  .  .  .  Why  do  you  stare  at  me 
in  that  way*?  ...  Is  my  nose  turned  upside  down,  by  any 
chance?" 

Tyltyl  was  quite  awake  by  this  time  and  did  not  trouble 
to  answer  the  question.  He  was  beside  himself  with  de- 
light! It  was  ages  and  ages  since  he  had  seen  his  Mummy 
and  he  never  tired  of  kissing  her. 

Mummy  Tyl  began  to  be  uneasy.  What  could  the  mat- 
ter be?  Had  her  boy  lost  his  senses?  Here  he  was  sud- 
denly talking  of  a  long  journey  in  the  company  of  the  Fairy 
and  Water  and  Milk  and  Sugar  and  Fire  and  Bread  and 
Light!  He  made  believe  that  he  had  been  away  a 
year!  .  .  . 

"But  you  haven't  left  the  room!"  cried  Mummy  Tyl, 
who  was  now  nearly  beside  herself  with  fright.  "I  put  you 
to  bed  last  night  and  here  you  are  this  morning!  It's 
Christmas  Day:  don't  you  hear  the  bells  in  the  vil- 
lage? .  .  ." 

"Of  course,  it's  Christmas  Day,"  said  Tyltyl,  obstinately, 
"seeing  that  I  went  away  a  year  ago,  on  Christmas  Eve! 
.  .  .  You're  not  angry  with  me?  .  .  .  Did  you  feel  very 
sad?  .  .  .  And  what  did  Daddy  say?  .  .  ." 


The  Awakening  171 

"Come,  you're  still  asleep!"  said  Mummy  Tyl,  trying  to 
take  comfort.  "You've  been  dreaming!  .  .  ,  Get  up  and 
put  on  your  breeches  and  your  little  jacket.  .  .  ." 

"Hullo,  I've  got  my  shirt  on!"  said  Tyltyl. 

And,  leaping  up,  he  knelt  down  on  the  bed  and  began  to 
dress,  while  his  mother  kept  on  looking  at  him  with  a  scared 
face. 

The  little  boy  rattled  on : 

"Ask  Mytyl,  if  you  don't  believe  me.  .  .  .  Oh,  we  have 
had  such  adventures !  .  .  .  We  saw  Grandad  and  Granny 
.  .  .  yes,  in  the  Land  of  Memory  ...  it  was  on  our  way. 
They  are  dead,  but  they  are  quite  well,  aren't  they, 
Mytyl  V 

And  Mytyl,  who  was  now  beginning  to  wake  up,  joined 
her  brother  in  describing  their  visit  to  the  grand-parents  and 
the  fun  which  they  had  had  with  their  little  brothers  and 
sisters. 

This  was  too  much  for  Mummy  Tyl.  She  ran  to  the 
door  of  the  cottage  and  called  with  all  her  might  to  her 
husband,  who  was  working  on  the  edge  of  the  forest : 

"Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear!"  she  cried.  "I  shall  lose  them  as  1 
lost  the  others !  .  .  .  Do  come !  .  .  .  Come  quick.  .  .  ," 

Daddy  Tyl  soon  entered  the  cottage,  with  his  axe  in  his 
hand;  he  listened  to  his  wife's  lamentations,  while  the  two 


172  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

Children  told  the  story  of  their  adventures  over  again  and 
asked  him  what  he  had  done  during  the  year. 

"You  see,  you  see!"  said  Mummy  Tyl,  crying.  "They 
have  lost  their  heads,  something  will  happen  to  them;  run 
and  fetch  the  doctor.  .  .  ." 

But  the  woodcutter  was  not  the  man  to  put  himself  out 
for  such  a  trifle.  He  kissed  the  little  ones,  calmly  lit  his 
pipe  and  declared  that  they  looked  very  well  and  that  there 
was  no  hurry. 

At  that  moment,  there  came  a  knock  at  the  door  and  the 
neighbour  walked  in.  She  was  a  little  old  woman  leaning 
on  a  stick  and  very  much  like  the  Fairy  Berylune.  The 
Children  at  once  flung  their  arms  around  her  neck  and  ca- 
pered round  her,  shouting  merrily : 

"It's  the  Fairy  Berylune !" 

The  neighbour,  who  was  a  little  hard  of  hearing,  paid  no 
attention  to  their  cries  and  said  to  Mummy  Tyl: 

"I  have  come  to  ask  for  a  bit  of  fire  for  my  Christmas 
stew.  .  .  .  It's  very  chilly  this  morning.  ...  Good-morn- 
ing, children.  .  .  ." 

Meanwhile,  Tyltyl  had  become  a  little  thoughtful.  No 
doubt,  he  was  glad  to  see  the  old  Fairy  again;  but  what 
would  she  say  when  she  heard  that  he  had  not  the  Blue 


The  Awakening  173 

Bird?    He  made  up  his  mind  like  a  man  and  went  up  tc 

her  boldly: 

"Fairy  Berylune,  I  could  not  find  the  Blue  Bird.  .  .  ." 
"What  is  he  saying4?"  asked  the  neighbor,  quite  taken 

aback. 

Thereupon  Mummy  Tyl  began 'to  fret  again: 
"Come,  Tyl  tyl,  don't  you  know  Goody  Berlingot*?" 
"Why,  yes,  of  course,"  said  Tyltyl,  looking  the  neighbor 

up  and  down.     "It's  the  Fairy  Berylune." 
"Bery  .  .  .  what?"  asked  the  neighbor. 
"Berylune,"  answered  Tyltyl,  calmly. 
"Berlingot,"  said  the  neighbor.      "You  mean  Berlingot." 
Tyltyl  was  a  little  put  out  by  her  positive  way  of  talk' 

ing;  and  he  answered: 

"Berylune  or  Berlingot,  as  you  please,  ma'am,  but  I  know 

what  I'm  saying.  .  .  ." 
Daddy  Tyl  was  beginning  to  have  enough  of  it : 
"We  must  put  a  stop  to  this,"  he  said.     "I  will  give  them 

a  smack  or  two." 

"Don't,"  said  the  neighbor;  "it's  not  worth  while.     Irs 

only  a  little  fit  of  dreaming;  they  must  have  been  sleeping 

in  the  moonbeams.  .  .  .  My  little  girl,  who  is  very  ill,  is 

often  like  that.  ,  ,  •" 


174  ^he  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

Mummy  Tyl  put  aside  her  own  anxiety  for  a  moment  and 
asked  after  the  health  of  Neighbor  Berlingot's  little  girl. 

"She's  only  so-so,"  said  the  neighbor,  shaking  her  head. 
"She  can't  get  up.  .  .  .  The  doctor  says  it's  her  nerves. 
...  I  know  what  would  cure  her,  for  all  that.  She  was 
asking  me  for  it  only  this  morning,  for  her  Christmas 
present.  .  .  ." 

She  hesitated  a  little,  looked  at  Tyltyl  with  a  sigh  and 
added,  in  a  disheartened  tone  : 

"What  can  I  do?     It's  a  fancy  she  has.  .  .  ." 

The  others  looked  at  one  another  in  silence:  they  knew 
what  the  neighbor's  words  meant.  Her  little  girl  had  long 
been  saying  that  she  would  get  well  if  Tyltyl  would  only 
give  her  his  dove;  but  he  was  so  fond  of  it  that  he  refused 
to  part  with  it.  .  .  . 

"Well,"  said  Mummy  Tyl  to  her  son,  "won't  you  give 
your  bird  to  that  poor  little  thing?  She  has  been  dying  to 
have  it  for  ever  so  long!  .  .  ." 

"My  bird !"  cried  Tyltyl,  slapping  his  forehead  as  though 
the)'  had  spoken  of  something  quite  out  of  the  way.  "My 
bird!"  he  repeated.  "That's  true,  I  was  forgetting  about 
him!  .  .  .  And  the  cage!  .  .  .  Mytyl,  do  you  see  the  cage? 
.  .  .  It's  the  one  which  Bread  carried.  .  .  .  Yes,  yes,  it's 
the  same  one,  there  it  is,  there  it  is !" 


"It's  the  Blue  Bird  we  were  looking  for !    We  have  been  miles  and  miles 
and  miles  and  he  was  here  all  the  time!" 


'The  Awakening  175 

Tyltyl  would  not  believe  his  eyes.  He  took  a  chair,  put 
it  under  the  cage  and  climbed  on  to  it  gaily,  saying : 

"Of  course,  I'll  give  him  to  her,  of  course,  I  will !  .  .  ." 

Then  he  stopped,  in  amazement : 

"Why,  he's  blue !"  he  said.  "It's  my  dove,  just  the  same, 
but  he  has  turned  blue  while  I  was  away!" 

And  our  hero  jumped  down  from  the  chair  and  began  to 
skip  for  joy,  crying: 

"It's  the  Blue  Bird  we  were  looking  for!  We  have  been 
miles  and  miles  and  miles  and  he  was  here  all  the  time !  .  .  . 
He  was  here,  at  home !  .  .  .  Oh,  but  how  wonderful !  .  .  . 
Mytyl,  do  you  see  the  bird4?  What  would  Light  say*? 
.  .  .  There,  Madame  Berlingot,  take  him  quickly  to  your 
little  girl.  .  .  ." 

While  he  was  talking,  Mummy  Tyl  threw  herself  into 
her  husband's  arms  and  moaned : 

"You  see?  .  .  .  You  see?  .  .  .  He's  taken  bad  again. 
.  .  .  He's  wandering.  .  .  ." 

Meantime,  Neighbor  Berlingot  beamed  all  over  her  face, 
clasped  her  hands  together  and  mumbled  her  thanks. 
When  Tyltyl  gave  her  the  bird,  she  could  hardly  believe 
her  eyes.  She  hugged  the  boy  in  her  arms  and  wept  with 
joy  and  gratitude: 

"Do  yOu  give  it  me?"  she  kept  saying.     "Do  you  give 


176  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

it  me  like  that,  straight  away  and  for  nothing?  .  .  .  Good- 
ness, how  happy  she  will  be !  ...  I  fly,  I  fly !  ...  I  will 
come  back  to  tell  you  what  she  says.  .  .  ." 

"Yes,  yes,  go  quickly,"  said  Tyltyl,  "for  some  of  them 
change  their  color!" 

Neighbour  Berlingot  ran  out  and  Tyltyl  shut  the  door 
after  her.  Then  he  turned  round  on  the  threshold,  looked 
at  the  walls  of  the  cottage,  looked  all  around  him  and 
seemed  wonderstruck: 

"Daddy,  Mummy,  what  have  you  done  to  the  house?" 
he  asked.     "It's  just  as  it  was,  but  it's  much  prettier." 

His  parents  looked  at  each  other  in  bewilderment;  and  the 
little  boy  went  on; 

"Why,  yes,  everything  has  been  painted  and  made  to 
look  like  new;  everything  is  clean  and  polished.  .  .  .  And 
look  at  the  forest  outside  the  window !  .  .  .  How  big  and 
fine  it  is!  .  .  .  One  would  think  it  was  quite  new!  .  .  , 
How  happy  I  feel  here,  oh,  how  happy  I  feel!" 

The  worthy  woodcutter  and  his  wife  could  not  make  out 
what  was  coming  over  their  son;  but  you,  my  dear  little 
readers,  who  have  followed  Tyltyl  and  Mytyl  through  their 
beautiful  dream,  will  have  guessed  what  it  was  that  altered 
everything  in  our  young  hero's  view. 

It  was  not  for  nothing  that  the  Fairy,  in  his  dream,  had 


The  Awakening  177 

given  him  a  talisman  to  open  his  eyes.  He  had  learned  to 
see  the  beauty  of  things  around  him;  he  had  passed  through 
trials  that  had  developed  his  courage;  while  pursuing  the 
Blue  Bird,  the  Bird  of  Happiness  that  was  to  bring  happi- 
ness to  the  Fairy's  little  girl,  he  had  become  open-handed 
and  so  good-natured  that  the  mere  thought  of  giving  pleas- 
ure to  others  filled  his  heart  with  joy.  And,  while  trav- 
elling through  endless,  wonderful,  imaginary  regions,  his 
mind  had  opened  out  to  life. 

The  boy  was  right,  when  he  thought  everything  more 
beautiful,  for,  to  his  richer  and  purer  understanding,  every- 
thing must  needs  seem  infinitely  fairer  than  before. 

Meanwhile,  Tyltyl  continued  his  joyful  inspection  of 
the  cottage.  He  leaned  over  the  bread-pan  to  speak  a  kind 
word  to  the  Loaves;  he  rushed  at  Tylo,  who  was  sleeping  in 
his  basket,  and  congratulated  him  on  the  good  fight  which 
he  had  made  in  the  forest. 

Mytyl  stooped  down  to  stroke  Tylette,  who  was  snoozing 
by  the  stove,  and  said: 

"Well,  Tylette?  .  .  .  You  know  me,  I  see,  but  you 
have  stopped  talking." 

Then  Tyltyl  put  his  hand  up  to  his  forehead: 

"Hullo!"  he  cried.  "The  diamond's  gone!  .  .  .  Who's 
taken  my  little  green  hat?  .  .  .  Never  mind,  I  don't  want 


178  The  Children's  Blue  Bird 

it  any  more!  .  .  .  Ah,  there's  Fire!  Good-morning,  sir! 
He'll  be  crackling  to  make  Water  angry!"  He  ran  to  the 
tap,  turned  it  on  and  bent  down  over  the  water.  ''Good- 
morning,  Water,  good-morning!  .  .  .  What  does  she 
say?  .  .  .  She  still  talks,  but  I  don't  understand  her  as 
well  as  I  did.  .  .  .  Oh,  how  happy  I  am,  how  happy  I 
am!  .  .  . 

"So  am  I,  so  am  I!"  cried  Mytyl. 

And  our  two  young  friends  took  each  other's  hands  and 
began  to  scamper  round  the  kitchen. 

Mummy  Tyl  felt  a  little  relieved  at  seeing  them  so  full 
of  life  and  spirits.  Besides,  Daddy  Tyl  was  so  calm  and 
placid.     He  sat  eating  his  porridge  and  laughing: 

"You  see,  they  are  playing  at  being  happy!"  he  said. 

Of  course,  the  poor  dear  man  did  not  know  that  a  won- 
derful dream  had  taught  his  little  children  not  to  play  at 
being  happy,  but  to  be  happy,  which  is  the  greatest  and  most 
difficult  of  lessons. 

"I  like  Light  best  of  all,"  said  Tyltyl  to  Mytyl,  standing 
on  tip-toe  by  the  window.  "You  can  see  her  over  there, 
through  the  trees  of  the  forest.  To-night,  she  will  be  in  the 
lamp.  Dear,  oh,  dear,  how  lovely  it  all  is  and  how  glad  I 
feel,  how  glad  I  .  .  ." 

He  stopped  and  listened.     Everybody  lent  an  ear.     They 


'The  Awakening  179 

» 

heard  laughter  and  merry  voices;  and  the  sounds  came 
nearer. 

"It's  her  voice!"  cried  Tyltyl.     "Let  me  open  the  door!" 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  was  the  little  girl,  with  her  mother, 
Neighbor  Berlingot. 

"Look  at  her,"  said  Goody  Berlingot,  quite  overcome  with 
joy.  "She  can  run,  she  can  dance,  she  can  fly!  It's  a  mir- 
acle! When  she  saw  the  bird,  she  jumped,  just  like 
that.  .  .  ." 

And  Goody  Berlingot  hopped  from  one  leg  to  the  other 
at  the  risk  of  falling  and  breaking  her  long,  hooked  nose. 

The  Children  clapped  their  hands  and  everybody 
laughed. 

The  little  girl  was  there,  in  her  long  white  night-dress, 
standing  in  the  middle  of  the  kitchen,  a  little  surprised  to 
find  herself  on  her  feet  after  so  many  months'  illness.  She 
smiled  and  pressed  Tyltyl's  dove  to  her  heart. 

Tyltyl  looked  first  at  the  child  and  then  at  Mytyi : 

"Don't  you  think  she's  very  like  Light?"  he  asked. 

"She  is  much  smaller,"  said  Mytyl. 

"Yes,  indeed!"  said  Tyltyl.     "But  she  will  grow !   .  .  ." 

And  the  three  Children  tried  to  put  a  little  food  down  the 
Bird's  beak,  while  the  parents  began  to  feel  easier  in  their 
minds  and  looked  at  them  and  smiled. 


180  The  Children  s  Blue  Bird 

Tyltyl  was  radiant.  I  will  not  conceal  from  you,  my 
dear  little  readers,  that  the  Dove  had  hardly  changed  col- 
our at  all  and  that  it  was  joy  and  happiness  that  decked  him 
with  a  magnificent  bright  blue  plumage  in  our  hero's  eyes. 
No  matter!  Tyltyl,  without  knowing  it,  had  discovered 
Light's  great  secret,  which  is  that  we  draw  nearer  to  happi- 
ness by  trying  to  give  it  to  others. 

But  now  something  happened.  Everybody  became  ex- 
cited, the  Children  screamed,  the  parents  threw  up  their 
arms  and  rushed  to  the  open  door:  the  Bird  had  suddenly 
escaped!     He  was  flying  away  as  fast  as  he  couJd. 

"My  bird !     My  bird !"  sobbed  the  little  girl. 

But  Tyltyl  was  the  first  to  run  to  the  staircase  and  he 
returned  in  triumph: 

"It's  all  right!"  he  said.  "Don't  cry!  He  is  still  in  the 
house  and  we  shall  find  him  again." 

And  he  gave  a  kiss  to  the  little  girl,  who  was  already 
smiling  through  her  tears: 

"You'll  be  sure  to  catch  him  again,  won't  you?"  she 
asked. 

"Trust  me,"  replied  our  friend,  confidentially.  "I  now 
know  where  he  is." 

You  also,  my  dear  little  readers,  now  know  where  the 


T 'he  Awakening  181 

Blue  Bird  is.  Dear  Light  revealed  nothing  to  the  wood- 
cutter's Children,  but  she  showed  them  the  road  to  happi- 
ness by  teaching  them  to  be  good  and  kind  and  generous. 

Suppose  that,  at  the  beginning  of  this  story,  she  had  said 
to  them : 

"Go  straight  back  home.  The  Blue  Bird  is  there,  in  the 
humble  cottage,  in  the  wicker  cage,  with  your  dear  father 
and  mother  who  love  you." 

The  Children  would  never  have  believed  her: 

"What !"  Tyltyl  would  have  answered.  "The  Blue  Bird, 
my  dove?  Nonsense:  my  dove  is  grey!  .  .  .  Happiness, 
in  the  cottage?  With  Daddy  and  Mummy?  Oh,  I  say! 
There  are  no  toys  at  home  and  it's  awfully  boring  there: 
we  want  to  go  ever  so  far  and  meet  with  tremendous  ad- 
ventures and  have  all  sorts  of  fun.  .  .  ." 

That  is  what  he  would  have  said;  and  he  and  Mytyl 
would  have  set  out  in  spite  of  everything,  without  listening 
to  Light's  advice,  for  the  most  certain  truths  are  good  for 
nothing  if  we  do  not  put  them  to  the  test  ourselves.  It 
only  takes  a  moment  to  tell  a  child  all  the  wisdom  in  the 
world,  but  our  whole  lives  are  not  long  enough  to  help  us 
understand  it,  because  our  own  experience  is  our  only  light. 

Each  of  us  must  seek  out  happiness  for  himself;  and  he 


i82 


The  Children 's  Blue  Bird 


has  to  take  endless  pains  and  undergo  many  a  cruel  dis- 
appointment before  he  learns  to  become  happy  by  appre- 
ciating the  simple  and  perfect  pleasures  that  are  always 
within  easy  reach  of  his  mind  and  heart. 


Proper  Names 


Berlingot  (bar  len  go') 
Berylune  (ba  ri  liin') 
Jean  (zhan) 
Kiki  (ke  ke') 
Madeleine  (mad  len') 
Mytyl  (me  tel') 
Neptune  (nep'  tun) 
Pierre  (py  ar') 


Pierrette  (pye  ret') 
Pierrot  (pye  ro') 
Saturn   (sat'  urn) 
Tyl  (tel) 
Tylette  (te  let') 
Tylo  (te  lo') 
Tyltyl  (tel  tel') 
Uranus  (u'  ra  nus) 


27 


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